Long Live the Queen
by Milaya Milen Zeal
Summary: A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world. Rating and genres vary per story, and some stories may go up to M for violent topics. Takes place after the ending, so spoilers can't be avoided. [Past Promptis]
1. Small Queen

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 767

 **Summary:** Somewhere deep in the recesses of people's minds, every person desires to be a parent. At 31 years of age, Prompto finds he is no different as he longs for a child of his own…

* * *

 _ **Small Queen**_

Prompto's never considered it before, but the more time passes and the longer he continues to live another day, the more he feels the by now familiar stirring in the very pit of his soul. He's tried to ignore it, telling himself it was a fool's errand, but it didn't stop the yearning he was now feeling, didn't stop the gnawing in his stomach as he watched people go about their lives. Or more specifically… parents with their children.

Even if no one knew (yet), it was official; Prompto wants to have his own child.

It isn't like he can get away from seeing all those children, too; with the return of the dawn, more and more people were having children left and right to repopulate Eos after the darkness that had plagued them for so long. This only makes the feeling that much worse as Prompto sits on a wall in Lestallum, trying to make pictures of anything _other_ than happy families…

No such luck, of course…

Eventually he gives up and laments on his own longing for a child. He wants to have a child so badly… maybe a boy that he can mess around and roughhouse with… or maybe a girl that he can spoil and pamper like a little princess…

Either option is okay, but there's just one problem; he has no one to share this wish of his with.

He's entertained the thought of asking Cindy, but he shakes the matter off quickly. Cindy is a nice girl and he does like her, and many would say he's been smitten with her since their first meeting some 10 years ago, but it was all just an act. It always has been, and that's why he's never as much talked to her about anything other than cars or other mechanics. He likes her, sure, but not in _that_ way… and even if he did, Cindy just isn't interested in having her own kid, or even a long-lasting relation with anything other than a car or some other vehicle.

Aranea's been his second choice, since they _did_ have a number of quick flings during the days when there was no light whatsoever and it was jus an endless night. But she, like Cindy, doesn't much care for actual long relations, or children. She's always made it a point to only meet with him at those times when there was no chance of her getting pregnant.

With them both out of the picture, who does that leave him with? He doesn't even _want_ to consider Iris, because he just knows that Gladio will kill him if he tried…

He's considered just placing an ad in the paper once, but he's not sure what he's supposed to put in it. Let alone, he isn't even sure if anyone will even accept his request. In the current world they live in, there's likely no woman alive who would give up her own child just for him. Of course, that doesn't stop him from dreaming and drawing up drafts for the ad. None of them have ever made the cut, of course, but he often likes to look back on them and tries to imagine what kind of child he could have helped bring into the world…

…until he realizes that he always specifies for his partners to have short, black hair and he cracks.

It's barely been a year since the dawn returned… barely a year since he lost the love of his life to an ancient prophecy that he still curses to this day. It's been less than a year since Noctis Lucis Caelum was taken from the world in exchange for the sunlight they all needed to survive… but Prompto sometimes wishes he was still living in he dark…

At least then he was alive, at least then there was _hope_ that he would see him again… that they could someday see each other again and lose themselves in each others' embrace. He doesn't even remember exactly when it started… maybe when they were still in school, when it was just a couple of horny teenagers finding solace in each other and little else. Somewhere between there and Atissia, something changed between them… it changed into something wonderful…

But then they reached the imperial capital and things went to hell and he almost lost himself… He'd barely held on… had barely been able to make it through those ten, long years, praying for a miracle… praying for Noct to come back…

And then he did… but the news he brought… the truth about what would happen one they reclaimed the Crown City… the Citadel… it _hurt!_

He'd wanted to scream, wanted to cry, wanted to wail and curse at the Six for the fate they pushed onto his beloved…

Worse still, though… was that Noct hadd been ready to do it… he was prepared to go through with it…

…for him…

"Prom… I want you to see the dawn again… I want you to live on… I want you to be _safe_ …"

He didn't care…

He didn't care about 'safety'…

He just wants his lover back…

He knows it never would've worked… if things had worked out as they should've… things would've ended at Altissia… with Noct's marriage to Lunafreya…

And even if, somehow, they could've stayed together… he now knows that he would have never been able to fulfill his dream. And that hurts… it really does…

He travels to the Crown City sometimes… just to watch the place that was once his home… see how much it had been reduced to ashes… see just how much he's truly lost…

He would run from Hammerhead, spend some hours there, and then call his Chocobo to get him back to Hammerhead for a restless sleep… as he always did when he came to the Crown City…

He's never dared to go into the city itself… he's too scared of what he'll find there… too scared of seeing the places he once knew reduced to rubble…

He doesn't want to see the places where he's made so many memories with Noct… memories that he holds so dear to his heart…

Prompto sighs as he climbs to his feet again and he looks to the horizon. The sun is beginning to set, so he will have to make tracks to get back… and prepare himself for another night of rolling around the bed, unable to sleep a wink.

"… _uu…uwaaaaaaaaah!_ "

He stops, alarmed, as he hears the scream, and he whirled around onto the sound, looking around, before he runs toward it. He recognizes the sound… knows what it means… and knows he has to find the source. So he runs and runs and he looks around, trying to isolate the exact location.

And finally he finds it, in a small crevice of a wall. He bends down and peeks in, and he spots the small, bundled up infant screaming its lungs out, crying and wailing and flailing its tiny hands. He frowns sadly as he crawls forward slowly, making soft, shushing sounds as he approaches. He reaches out and gently takes one tiny hand in his own, rubbing his fingers along the small fist, and the babe whines and whimpers, before it opens it tear-filled eyes and looks up, sniffling and hiccupping and Prompto's heart almost breaks.

Who would leave a child here alone?

He manages to carefully take the infant out from the crevice, and as he sits back, he gently cradles it in his arms. The babe gurgles and then settles, one of its small fists into its mouth. He smiles as he looks into the little one's blue eyes, its head topped with short, fluffy black hair. He peeks a little bit into the blanket around the babe, and he quickly determines the little one is a girl.

Prompto sits back and cradles the girl, holding her close and murmuring gentle words of comfort, even though she's no longer crying, and as he gazes down at her, he smiles at her, hoping to soothe whatever fears she still has. Thankfully, she falls asleep soon, snuggling up close to Prompto, and he smiles as he tucks her back in, and on a whim, he moves in and kisses her forehead. She's just so adorable… and there's just something about her that tugs at his heartstrings and he can't just ignore it.

He gets up, calls his Chocobo, and then hurries back to Hammerhead, after he's secured the small girl within his jacket, holding her close to his chest and trying so very hard to not jostle the girl too much, but she remains blissfully unaware of his rushed journey back to safety.

Of course Cindy is surprised, but she doesn't ask many questions and he's glad. He just asks her to help with some supplies and then he retreats to the caravan, and he goes to bed almost immediately, having prepared everything for whenever the little girl wakes up.

As he lies there, though, he cannot help but smile as he lightly fingers her short hair. She's almost like Noct, he realizes lazily, and it makes him smile as he settles next to her. She's got the same eyes… the same hair… hell, she even seems to have his little pouty lips… if he doesn't know better, he would have said she was his lover's daughter.

Of course, she can't be… but he likes to believe… and likes to believe that he found her for a reason…

He wants to keep her… he knows the others will not approve, but he doesn't care. He wants to keep her, to raise her, to see her grow and watch her become a beautiful woman. He wants to be there for her… because he cannot help but feel like, somehow, a little fragment of his best friend and lover have survived the departure of the night and the return of the dawn.

It probably isn't wise… but he names her then.

"It's okay, Regina…" he murmurs softly, running a hand along her cheek. "You're safe now… Daddy's here to keep you safe…"

 _Regina_ … "Queen"… Because he believes that's what she is; she truly is royalty, even if only in his eyes.

She murmurs in her sleep, but she doesn't wake, and Prompto smiles, placing a gentle hand on her little tummy, before he shuts his eyes to get some rest. And for once, his dreams after visiting the ruins of his former home are filled with pleasant memories instead of horrible nightmares of days of endless night and cold, harsh environments.

For once, he thanks the Six… thanks them for this small, precious miracle to help him stay alive…

* * *

 **Notes: This is a series I began on AO3, and I finally decided to put it up here. I'll try to update this every now and again, but it all depends. A lot of this story I already have in my head, but if there's something specific you want to see happening, let me know and I might be able to work with it.**


	2. Guilty Pleasures

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 777

 **Summary:** Every person has guilty pleasures. Some have more than others, but there isn't a person in all of Eos that doesn't have one. Ten-year-old Regina is the same way…

* * *

 _ **Guilty Pleasures  
**_

Every person has something that they take great pleasure in, but can't tell anyone about. This is something Regina comes to learn very early on. And it doesn't take her long to figure out the few guilty pleasures of those closest to her.

Her dad's guilty pleasure is to, on occasion, sit on the couch all cuddled up in blankets and eating chocolate and vanilla ice cream right out of the tub…with a soup spoon. Iggy would certainly throw a fit if he saw him like that, but of course he didn't know, because it was like her dad's biggest secret.

He didn't gain any weight from it; he always jogged those extra calories right back off again the next morning, running twice as hard and twice as long. That could NOT be healthy.

Ignis' wasn't really much of a guilty pleasure anymore since most knew about it anyway, but it was that he enjoyed a warm serving of Cup Noodles every now and again when he just didn't feel like cooking. Which, to this day, she still doesn't get; why let a blind man COOK?! Now that's not criticism on Iggy's cooking, by no means (she _loved_ it when he came over and cooked them all something tasty), but she just couldn't understand why…

Gladio's was probably the hardest to figure out; he was just so extremely devoted to his job as a guard that it was almost impossible to run into him and not find him either training or some other trivial guard duty. In fact, it took her almost a year before she finally figured it out, and even then it was by accident. Or coincidence, either or, really. But his was actually just looking after and coddling girls. Now that wasn't meant in a "dirty way" as some would call it; he just pampered them and 9 times out of 10 would give into their demands/requests. Once she figured this out, she often sought him out when she wanted something she _knew_ her dad wouldn't get her.

It was worth getting chewed out for later, because it was funny seeing Gladdy be scolded by her dad (who was much shorter and far weaker physically).

But Regina has her own little guilty pleasure, too, and it's one she can't tell her dad, or anyone, really. Because if she does, one way or another, it'll reach her dad; like it always does. And while it's a silly pleasure, and one that surely isn't a _bad_ thing, she doesn't dare breathe it, even…

She, Regina Argentum, loved—absolutely _adored_ —to fish.

Now what was wrong with fishing? She wasn't even sure of it herself, but her dad definitely had a problem with it. Or, well, maybe saying he had a "problem" with it was not the proper way to say it; rather, it made him more than a little uncomfortable. He's never said it out loud that he did, but she can tell whenever they pass a lake and they come across a group of people fishing that he wanted to walk past them as soon as possible.

He never asks her if she wants to watch, doesn't seem to notice how much she wants to join them and hunt for the bounties of the great deep. She isn't angry with him for it, but his obvious displeasure with the sport made her that much more hesitant to ever bring it up.

That's why, when she fishes, it's in secret, without her dad, Iggy or Gladio knowing about it. She'd go out when they were at Galdin Quay, saying she was going out to enjoy the fresh air, go for a swim down the beach, or just catch some sun while reading a good book. She'd then travel down to the wharf, buy some supplies with a small handful of cash she'd saved, and borrow a rod and some line from the shop before she settled on the wharf to spend the next few hours. She'd sit there and just enjoy herself there, breathing even as she regarded the fish as they swam closer and closer to the surface.

She couldn't keep her catches, of course, but she usually caught more than enough fish to make up for the costs she'd made, and have a little extra for next time to try again. No one had noticed yet, thankfully; since all the funds she made with fishing were used exclusively for fishing. But even so, she'd love it if she didn't have to hide her hobby. Right now, she had no one to share her victories with, no one to share her excitement with when she caught something that was bigger than her torso, no one to tell her good job or pat her on the back when she dragged the fish ashore.

She wants to… she really does.

* * *

It's a nice, quiet day when they travel to Galdin Quay again. Perfect fishing weather, she knows, but she'll probably not have the chance until later. Her dad is talking about what they plan to do in Galdin Quay, which isn't really much different from what they usually do, and Ignis is already saying as such while Gladio is reading another one of his novels. Regina is in the back, or more specifically on the top of the car, her feet on the seat as she looks around the surroundings.

She likes this view; it makes her feel like the world is at her feet, like she can do anything, but she knows better than to act on those feelings. She's still surprised her dad isn't throwing a fit at her for sitting there, but she doesn't question it for long. She never does.

She finally slips back in her seat when her dad pulls into Galdin Quay and then parks it with nary a splutter. As they get out, Regina prods Gladio and sneakily says the car will cease to work when they're about to leave. Gladio picks up on it and smirks, murmuring back that it will break as they are on the way back. And then her dad is grumbling and saying he can still hear them, and they laugh and get out of the car.

It's such a long way to the restaurant and what used to be the harbor for the ferry to Altissia, and she always hops at the start and then dashes off along the planks, ignoring as her dad hurried after her with a shout for her to slow down because the planks can be wet. They're not, she knows; not when it isn't raining, anyway, so she doesn't slow down.

Of course she reaches the restaurant/hotel first, despite being the youngest and the shortest, and she laughs as she waits for the others to catch up. Once they're all there, they go to the restaurant for lunch, and she prepares herself for another one of Iggy's grumbling rants, because he's always criticizing the food made by others. But, shocker, the dish they all want to have is unavailable because they weren't able to catch the proper fish for it. That's a little depressing, because Regina was really looking forward to having it. Sure, Ignis could do it better, but as her dad said, they were there to relax and have fun, and not to slave over a hot stove.

Maybe Ignis noticed her disappointment (how even?) because he mentions how they can go and catch one so that the cook can prepare it. And she actually starts to wonder if Iggy _knows_ , but surely not, right?

Her dad doesn't seem too thrilled, but when he sees her obvious disappointment at not being able to have the dish she'd like he cracks and agrees that they'll go fishing. And she's excited to no end. They're going to go fishing! What's not to like about this situation?

They go to the wharf and they get a single rod, because the tiny wharf isn't big enough for all of them.

Her dad is struggling with hooking the lure on the line, and she's tempted to show him how it's done, but she doesn't. Instead, she waits and watches as he casts the line out, and then they wait. He hooks something within five minutes and he tries so hard to reel it in… but he's reeling too much and the line snaps and he cries out in slight frustration.

Gladio decides to try next, and he manages a little better, but he isn't able to land it.

Even Iggy decides to try, stating that it really shouldn't be so hard even for a blind man. She wants to disagree, but she says nothing. Shockingly, he _does_ do better than her dad OR Gladio, but he still doesn't manage to land the fish.

Once Ignis has replaced the line, they start to question who keeps fishing, though most votes are going to Ignis, because he got closest. She tells herself to be quiet, because it's no good if they figure out. However, as Ignis is preparing a second throw, she can't help but pout.

"Can I try?"

The question is out before she can stop it, and they all stare at her, but in the end, Ignis passes her the rod and she smiles in thanks.

Once the familiar rod is in her hands and she's secured the lure, she steps up to the end of the wharf. She stands for a moment and feels the wind, and then looks along the water, searching, before she arches her arm, and then expertly casts out the line, listening to the satisfying whir of the reel just before the lure lands with a small plop on the water's surface. She holds the rod in her hands with a small smile as she waits patiently.

Gladio is saying something as she give the reel a small flick, but she isn't listening; she's trying to focus on the fish.

The lure suddenly disappears beneath the water and her rod bends and she gasps and then pulls. Her dad and Gladio give their own startled exclamations before they try to coach her as she 'battles' the fish on the other side of the line. She doesn't need it, but she pretends to be listening anyway. She spins the reel in short rotations every time, one flick at a time, though in rapid succession. It takes a little longer, but it's safer. The fish switches directions, so she moves with it. Her rod is shaking, so she halts her reeling temporarily.

It's close now… closer than it was with Ignis, even, and they notice, because her dad is loudly cheering now, while Gladio is shouting what he likely believes to be practical advice. Ignis is silent, but then again, he can't see what's happening.

And then…

"I got it!" she cries as she almost bounces on her feet, scampering the last few feet forward to pull the fish out of the water and her dad and Gladio are crowing their praise as they come up behind her. Gladio slaps her on the back, making her stumble, and her dad hugs her and kisses her temple, telling her she's amazing and that he's proud of her and she doesn't normally grin, but she feels like she's grinning.

This is what she wanted; to be able to share these wonderful moments with her family.

Her dad makes her pose with the fish for a photo and that's fine. She holds it up in front of her, trying to stop grinning before her face sticks, but it's so hard. They carry the fish to the restaurant, and Regina proudly displays her catch to the woman behind the counter and the woman praises her for her nice catch, and before long they are enjoying a well earned meal.

And as they eat, Regina is still practically glowing as she takes bite after bite, savoring every single morsel of her meal. She's never had the chance to eat her own catches, and while she's eaten this dish before, it tastes especially tasty today and she feels like her whole body thrumming with her joy.

When they finish, Gladio goes to the bathroom, and her dad goes to pay for their meal, leaving her with Iggy.

"So, are you glad you don't have to hide it anymore?"

She freezes and she stares at Iggy. He doesn't look at her, of course not; he's still blind, after all. But he doesn't have to for her to realize what he meant…

He knew. And most likely, he'd _always_ known,

Maybe he feels her looking at him, because he smiles, and lifts a hand. He was never able to find her head, but she smiles and reached out, leading it to the top of her head. He then ruffles her hair and she smiles a little wider.

"Thank you, Iggy…"

"Anytime, Regina."

On her next birthday, her father gets her her own fishing rod.

…

By the way… she won the bet about the car~


	3. Dreams

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 772

 **Summary:** Dreams are subconscious messages your brain gets from your heart, and they let you sleep through the dark of night in peace… but little Regina is terrified of her dreams… because her dreams are bad.

* * *

 _ **Dreams  
**_

Regina doesn't like sleeping. Well, that's a lie; she loves sleeping, and if Daddy didn't wake her up so early every time, she'd likely sleep until noon, because she wants to be well-rested (and Daddy _does_ say princesses needs a lot of beauty sleep), but the sleeping itself isn't the problem.

The dreams that haunt her every night _are_.

Little five-year-old Regina already knows about dreams and how they come to you when you sleep to help you get through the dark (because the dark is _scary!_ She HATES it!) of the night, and knows dreams are there to help you rest. Daddy told her that, and Daddy always knows what he's talking about, because Daddy knows everything!

But then why are Regina's dreams so dark always?

Well, maybe not always… there's light there sometimes, but it seems like more often than not, her dreams are dark. That's why she doesn't like going to sleep alone and she always asks Daddy to read her a story, and of course Daddy does, because she's his little princess and he'll do anything to help her sleep pleasantly. He would lay down next to her on the bed, giving her one half of the book as he read to her, and she loves listening to Daddy's voice so close to her because like this she knows he's always there for her, so she snuggles her face under his chin and she giggles at the scratchy/tickling feeling from the hair on his chin.

But the story always ends and she always pouts at the end, but Daddy promises that he'll be right there, watching over her and he kisses her forehead, gently ruffling her hair, before he turns on her little Chocolight and its music fills the room and she smiles. And every time she asks "When are we going to see the Chocobos?" and the answer is always a kind "Sunday, princess," with a smile that puts her heart at ease.

Then he leaves the room, but not before he wishes her a good night and then flicks off the light, leaving only her Chocolight to illuminate the darkness around her. He leaves the door open a crack, too, so the hall light also shines through, giving her a little bit more comfort.

She doesn't always fall asleep right away… sometimes she gets out of bed and runs circles around her bed (as best as she can with the wall in the way), to exhaust herself further so that hopefully she doesn't dream. It doesn't always help, but she always hopes it does.

So she cuddles under the blankets, grabs her Chocochick plushy and holds it tight, and then she closes her eyes…

…it doesn't help tonight…

* * *

She's running down a big, scary hall… she's crying and sniffling, and all alone… there's sounds around her and it scares her… so she goes into a small crevice when the sound gets too loud and hides, covering her mouth and nose and trying so hard not to whimper.

Something stomps past, and it hurts her ears and she bites her lip as she watches it staggers past, and then disappears beyond her view again. She then scampers out and starts running and she keeps going and going and going and…

And then she trips and she cries and she flops forward and it's _cold!_ Why is it cold?! Why?!

She climbs up and rubs her arms as she shivers and tries to run, but her feet are freezing and she can't feel her toes and she's whimpering and she cries, but her tears freeze against her face and it actually burns! How does ice _burn?!_

Somehow— _somehow_ —she's able to keep going, and with the wind roaring in her ears, she cries out, she screams for Daddy because she's so scared… she's scared and alone and she wants her Daddy!

She stumbles, but she keeps going… she has to find her Daddy…!

She looks up by chance… and she sees him then… but he's running to somewhere and doesn't seem to notice her.

She cries and shouts as she forces herself to run after him, tripping and stumbling after him, pushing past the branches and bushes that grab at her, breaking through skin and she becomes dizzy and she almost stumbles but she keeps going…

But then her foot hits something wet and her leg snaps out from under her and she cries and hits the ground with a cry of pain as the wetness soaks through her back and splatters over her as she falls into it. She pushes up, but her hands hurt and then they slip and she falls to her forearms, and she whimpers in pain.

Then she squints out from under her eyelids and she feels cold and her body goes numb…

 _Red…_

It's everywhere; sticking to her and she scrambles up, trying to push it away but this only makes it spread and turns her arms as red as everything else and she whimpers at the horrible smell because it just smells so bad and she wants to cry out…

And then she looks up and she breaks down and she screams…

* * *

She sits up with a scream and then she curls up and she cries and wails and hiccups and whimpers. And then the door bursts open and Daddy runs in and he's by her side in an instant, holding her and shushing her and kissing her forehead and holding her close and Regina cries and wails as she holds on tight and doesn't let go at all. The light of her Chocolight is so soothing but what's more soothing is her Daddy holding her close and reassuring her that everything's alright and that she's fine.

Little Regina whimpers as Daddy moves over and lays down next to her, gently holding her close and running a hand through her hair.

"It's okay, sweetie… Sssh… shush now, love… Daddy's here… everything's okay… you're safe now…"

She sniffles and finally manages to calm a little bit, but just a little.

"…stay?"

"Of course, princess…"

Regina manages a watery smile as she curls up against her Daddy, as he wraps his arms around her and holds her so securely, pressing a kiss to her forehead and whispering soft words of comfort to her. Her anxiety slowly goes away, and she managed to calm her breathing down again, her fingers curling in Daddy's shirt.

She's so relieved…

So relieved…

She doesn't know what the red means…

But she knows that when she sees it, it hurts…

And so she's so relieved… when the red stuff isn't coming from her Daddy…


	4. Lord and Lady

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 774 - M.E. 782

 **Summary:** Regina's never been much for dresses or skirts, even at a young age, but she does love to watch how they flow as those wearing them walk. And this doesn't change with age.

* * *

 _ **Lord and Lady  
**_

Dresses are like Regina's biggest annoyance, and skirts come a close second. And it doesn't help that every time Iris comes around, she _always_ tries to get her to wear one or the other, and while everyone tries to get her to wear them, Regina will always immediately flee to the sanctuary of her room until Iris promised to put the frilly skirt or dress away. That didn't make her happy, but Regina doesn't care about that; there's _no_ _way_ she's wearing a dress (or skirt)!

Thankfully, her dad doesn't make her wear them and he lets her pick what she wants to wear. And Iris blames him for Regina not liking dresses and stuff, because she's always around him and Gladdy and Iggy, so she's become used to pants and shorts, but Regina doesn't care about that; she's happy wearing what she is, and she's not going to let Iris ruin that!

Added to that, in all of her seven years, Regina doesn't remember ever seeing a girl her own age wearing a dress… or even a skirt. Most of them were all wearing pants, so she doesn't get why _she_ of all people has to wear one when no one else does. Not even Cindy wears skirts; she just wears very short shorts, and Iris isn't complaining with her!

Iris also doesn't seem happy that Regina insists on having her hair cut short all the time, and she can't understand why, since she doesn't have that long hair herself, and, again, no one else really has that long hair. Sure, Regina likes to keep her hair a little shorter than most, but it's none of Iris' business how she wants to dress or how she wants to have her hair. And no, she doesn't care that Iris sometimes says it'd be better if she was born a boy, because then her attire would've made sense, because Regina doesn't want to be a boy. She's happy being a girl, even though she often _acts_ like a rowdy boy when messing around with her dad and his friends.

This's just the way she _is_ and Iris needs to shut up about it!

On the other hand, though… just because she doesn't want to wear dresses, that doesn't mean she's completely opposed to them… on other people, that is.

She's been sitting on a wall in Lestallum plenty of times, slurping from a Cup Noodles with Gladdy while her dad and Iggy were shopping for ingredients, and she's found her gaze drawn to some girls that _do_ wear dresses. They're usually very simple dresses and nothing overly revealing, but Regina finds herself watching the dresses flutter in the wind or moving along the girls' legs. She isn't even sure why she likes looking at the dresses like that, when she hates the thought of wearing them _sooooo_ much.

Gladdy has once teased her about trying it on when he caught her looking.

She'd threatened to throw her (hot) noodles in his face.

Her dad once told her that if she really didn't like dresses, she would've hated going to his old school; you HAD to wear uniform there! And girls _had_ to wear skirts!

Nooooo thank you!

And speaking of school… there isn't really much of that left in Lucis, Duscae, Leide… or anywhere, really. She finds it a bit sad that kids are now dependent on going out to meet new people their own age, because she's quickly figured out that this often formed very closed off groups, with no room for new arrivals or potential new friends. She knows; she's tried to fit in with other groups before, and it's always ended in failure.

Girls don't accept her because she's too 'rough' on them, and boys don't accept her because she's a girl.

Well, fine. She doesn't need to make new friends, anyway. She's just fine on her own.

That's what she tells her dad, at least, whenever he picks her up from her usual spots after he's finished his errands, and she knows that it hurts him to know she doesn't want to make friends with others her own age. But her dad doesn't seem to get it; it isn't that _she_ doesn't want to make friends with others… it's the exact opposite, with _others_ not wanting to be her friend. But how is she supposed to explain that?

The answer? She can't…

* * *

Lestallum is really the only really big place around now, and while new villages and cities have popped up over time, there's not a single one as big, or as populated as Lestallum, and that's why they're so often over there. Because it's also the place with the most people her own age, and thus they (that is, her dad, Iggy and Gladdy) think it's the perfect place for her to make some friends, despite the earlier, failed attempts.

Regina doesn't really care anymore, though; she's done her usual thing, which is walk around ALL of Lestallum, and then moving to one of the spots in the older area of Lestallum, en route to the power plant, where she sits and just thinks. It isn't as isolated as some would think, but no one seems to notice her from where she sits, and while Regina hates thinking like that, she can't help but feel like the people of Lestallum are just too focused on their work to focus on any children that aren't their own, even if the child is a seven-year-old seemingly so far removed from her parents.

…that's kind of depressing, she knows, but she's seen it happen… sees it happening now.

She breathes in and looks down at herself, wondering if it's the clothes she wears that push people away, or if it makes them think she doesn't need help. She wears dark shorts, down to her knees, yellow sneakers (nice and bright and clashing, just to make Iris fume, hah!), and a green tank. Her hair's cut short, too, and her dad's actually played with it a bit, styling it with some of his gel so it's standing up a bit at the back. Well… it's pointing to behind her, not really standing up, but she likes it.

…She looks like a boy, she just realizes.

She supposes it doesn't matter, and maybe it's better. She's heard her dad say to Iris before that Regina looking like a boy is better for her, because it means strangers won't try to take her away then. She's not sure what that means, but she won't deny that there are bad people out there. And she knows that other kids aren't much better, either. She's seen what they can be capable of…

" _Give it back!_ "

She blinks and looks up, and she quickly spots a group of kids, laughing and running, with one of them holding some sort of book, and a few moments after, another kid runs after, about the same age… but something's off about them…

Not that Regina spends long thinking on the 'different' factor. Instead, she hurries after them, trying to get a feel for what is going on, even though she can already guess. Her dad would probably say she shouldn't be interfering with things that aren't her business, but she's almost sure that even _he_ would've jumped in here. And so that's exactly what she'll do.

They're out in front of the power plant now, and the group—bullies, she's sure of it now—are throwing the book from one person to the next while the one who'd been chasing them—who was also shorter/younger than they were—was trying almost desperately to get it back. And if there's one thing Regina's always hated, it's guys like those bullies who are just beating down on those lower than them.

She waits a few moments, though, as she regards their victim. And she blinks curiously as something clicks in her head and she begins to get an inkling of a reason as to why those bullies are doing what they're doing.

And her thoughts on that?

She.

Is.

Very.

VERY,

 _Angry!_

Snarling from the back of her throat like an angry, starving voretooth (with a furious glare to match the sound, she's sure), she stalks forward, making it a point to stomp her feet angrily. They don't notice her approaching until she's right there and snags the book from one of the bullies just as he was preparing to throw it, at the point where his grip loosened enough to release it for a throw. Instead, the book now rests in her hand and she steps back with a glare as the whole group now faces her.

"How pathetic can you get?!" she snarls out, and she makes it a point to show off her teeth as she does. Gladdy always says she's really scary when she snarls because she's angry. It doesn't happen often, but it does happen… usually with Iris. "How many of you are there? Six? Seven? And you're going up against _one_ kid?! Have you no shame?! Are you boys really _that_ pathetic that you can't even handle _one_ kid on your own!?"

It's a relatively short argument, really; the 'leader' of the group is telling her she's no right to interfere or… something, she doesn't care, and she keeps arguing her point, telling them over and over that they're weak and pathetic and she even goes as far to say that they all deserve a good spanking from their mommies and a firm scolding from their dads. The argument turns physical, then, and they try to hit her, but she dodges easily, so quickly that it's almost like she's warped to next to them, and she just keeps doing that, stepping back and forth and dodging their punches, because why should she bother throwing a single punch at these guys? They're not worth it.

She _does_ , however, stick her foot out at one point when their 'leader' is obviously getting exhausted from the constant punching at air, and this makes him hit the floor with a cry of pain. She then manages to trick the others into hitting each other by dodging _just_ right, and she laughs as, in the end, they're all on the floor, groaning and whimpering in pain and embarrassment.

Regina believes they've learned then, and knows they're too tired to get up and attempt anything else, and so she walks to their victim quietly. She looks at him, and then holds out the book—which she just noticed is a _sketchbook_ —and says: "Here you go."

He's blinking at her, and it makes tears roll down his cheeks, but he accepts the book with shaking hands and sniffles, holding it close to his chest as he murmurs a soft, whimpered 'thank you' and she can't help but feel sorry for him. She looks him over once more, and she feels a sense of joy in the fact that she's been able to help someone, a sense of… what's that word again? 'Satisfaction'? …yeah, that was it. She felt really satisfied that she could help… even if it was only with a little thing like getting back a stolen item.

She tells him they should go before those jerks get back to their feet, and he shakily agrees to it, and he walks after her, trying to stay behind her, but Regina keeps slowing enough so that he passes her and then she matches up again, just so she can watch him walk, until he notices and moves back again. She's almost tempted to tell him to stop doing that, but she doesn't; it's more fun this way. Now she's not doing it to be mean, mind you… but…

"…hey."

"U-um…! Y…yeah?"

He's nervous, she notices, anxious even, like he's afraid she's gonna snap at him and be just as mean, or something. But she doesn't, of course; she merely smiles at him and then she says a simple phrase that she means from the bottom of her heart;

"I think the dress is very pretty on you."

He flushes, eyes wide, and he tries to hide behind his sketchbook as the words register and he tries to get words out, fidgeting in place as his fingers hold tight to the book. He finally dares peek over the book and squeaks out a small 'thank you' again, but his entire body is trembling. So she does the one thing that her dad always does to help her when she's feeling nervous or scared; she steps up and reaches up, and then ruffles his silvery-blonde hair (which is also really pretty, by the way!), and he squeals and she can't help but laugh.

"You're so adorable!" she says without thinking, but she means every word.

She swears; his face is as red as a Leiden Tomato and he's just _so cute she wants to pinch his chubby little cheeks and smooch his forehead!_

" _Regina!_ "

The call makes her look up in alarm, and she looks to the sky and she gasps as she notices the sun has left the heavens above her a long time ago already and she hadn't even noticed. Her dad must've been searching for her for some time already.

"I have to go!" she says when she looks at him and starts to run off, halfway turned to him, still, so that she can call out to him: "I'll see you next time, okay?" before she hurries as quickly as she can to her dad, before he starts to tear Lestallum apart looking for her.

She finds him quickly, and he looks incredibly relieved when she runs over and he bends down to pull her into a hug.

" _There_ you are, princess! Where did you disappear to?"

Regina smiles brightly at the words, and she says with a hint of pride and hint of a giggle because she knows her dad will love the news, too: "I was making a friend!"

Her dad's eyes widen and he looks surprised at her, but then he smiles and he praises her for _finally_ making friends, kissing her forehead and telling her to bring her new friend over so he can meet them, too, and she promises to do so when next they are in Lestallum again.

* * *

The next time they go, Iris has another dress ready, but she seems to have already resigned herself to the fact that Regina won't be interested… Well, she got the shock of her life when Regina smiles brightly and grabs the dress, telling her a quick thank you before immediately bolting from the building, a giddy spring in her step as she runs. The dress is under her arm as she hurries along, looking around and trying to spot the person she's looking for.

But she can't find him…

She spends the whole day looking for him, and sometimes she thinks she saw him… but whenever she looks, there's no one there. By the end of the day, she's sitting by the viewpoint overlooking the Disc of Cauthess, more than a little depressed as she sits on the table, lightly kicking her legs with the dress resting in her lap. She holds it up then and looks it over; it's baby-blue with these little bows along the skirt, and this big bow on the front with a red brooch in the center, with those poofy shoulders you see in fairy tales so often.

Regina definitely wouldn't wear it… but…

She sighs and puts the dress on the table next to her, and she spends the remainder of the day looking out at the Disc without a word until her dad comes to find her.

It isn't until she's in the backseat of the car, lamenting on her day that she realizes she forgot the dress on the table.

…oh well…

* * *

Eight years pass her by and sometimes Regina feels like the days just whooshed right by without so much as a peep and chat. She's fifteen now, and _still_ isn't wearing dresses. She wears loose, but smooth pants and boots that clip shut around the pants legs so she doesn't mess them up, with the shirt being loose and airy, though still hugging her frame firmly, her dad's old leather jacket slung along her shoulders and fingerless gloves on her hands. Her hair's still short (of course it is), and she's filled out nicely… but she's wearing a sports bra because it goddamn hurt to run around because of the damn jiggling all the time!

Iris still got her dresses and skirts, and she occasionally took them out with her (never wearing them), but she's stopped doing that a few years ago. They now hang in her closet back home, unused and just waiting for the moths to feast on the frilly fabric. Sometimes she takes them out and holds them out to look at them, and she wonders, not for the first time, if he'd have liked them and if he'd have worn them if she asked him, and then she'd wonder what he'd look like in them…

It wasn't healthy, probably… but she doesn't care. She _hates_ wearing dresses… but she _loves_ watching other people wear them…

And _he_ … he wore them _so_ well, even when he was so young…

Was it that bad if she wanted to be a little selfish and just see something she loved looking at every now and then?

She always sighs and puts the dresses back, dusting them off a little before she closes the closet for another week or two. She knows by now that it's a lost cause; she should just give up and move on. Now that she's older, the kids that were once not too keen on having her join had did a full 180 and were now vying for her friendship. The girls are calling her a 'lord' (wait what?) and the guys are impressed with her strength despite being a girl and ask her to join these 'clubs' they have going.

But Regina doesn't want that. She feels like it's all just forced and they're just looking at her for her looks and that isn't what she wants. She's especially not making friends with those jerks from way back when. She doubts they've aged properly anyway…

She sighs as she walks through the streets of Lestallum. It's still early, but she promised Iggy she'd go to the market and get some stuff for him, and her dad had also asked her to get him some more film since he was running out. She still would've preferred to get up a little later (what kind of ungodly hour is SIX IN THE MORNING?!) but she supposes that by her earliest, everything they needed would already be gone.

It's a quick errand and she gets everything with a few Gil to spare for some snacks for herself as she makes her way back. She's just bitten down on a chocolate covered Moogle-cookie when there's a sudden pat to her shoulder and she whirls around with the cookie still between her teeth.

"Good morning~"

She blinks, startled. She doesn't know this person, she feels, but _wow_ , the first word to enter her head is "beautiful". Bright silver-colored hair is secured in an intricate ensemble of braids with one longer one on the shoulder, bringing attention to the pale face, rose-painted lips and eyes shaded by bluish-green, and the long lashes that flutter with every bat of the eyelids. A beautiful blue dress accentuates the silvery hair with a cravat-like bow up front with a red-gemmed decorative pin dead in the center, and it flutters by the knees, and the shoes—no wait those are _heels!_ —match the dress perfectly with the red gemstones by the nose.

"I don't think I've introduced myself, yet," the person says suddenly, and a thin, well-manicured hand with light blue nails is splayed across the chest. "I'm Dominatio." A small giggle escapes and a warm smile passes those rosy lips then. "It's nice to meet you~"

Regina isn't sure what she's supposed to say. This person just came up to her and just randomly introduced themselves to her. How does anyone respond to that properly?

…but as she looks at the face again, and looks deep into those shining, golden-amber eyes, it clicks.

She smiles with a chuckle and she asks cheekily after finishing her bite: "Don't I know you already?"

The smile falls and his expression falters, before he smiles sheepishly and lightly reaches to rub the side of his neck, unsure of what to say to that. But Regina merely smiles and she lightly pats his shoulder and she quips out;

"I'm Regina. C'mon; I still have some deliveries to finish, and I'm sure everyone's going to want to meet you."

There's a hint of uncertainty there in his eyes, but in the end, he smiles, relieved and he follows her, heels clicking against the ground and Regina feels a surge of happiness in her chest as they walk.

It's funny, really… she's been called a 'lord' by people (mostly girls) before, and now here she is; walking side by side with her very own lady. But she doesn't mind. It actually feels very nice.


	5. Vegetables

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 771

 **Summary:** Regina doesn't like vegetables. But her Daddy is prepared to do whatever to make her eat them anyway.

* * *

 _ **Vegetables  
**_

"Regina, eat your vegetables."

"No! They're icky!"

" _Regina._ "

"No!"

This conversation isn't anything new, really, but Regina can't help it; she hates vegetables! They're so icky and they're just so… not-tasty! Okay, so she doesn't know many big words yet, being only four years old, but she knows very well how to say she doesn't like something.

And vegetables are no exception.

She hates 'em!

Potatoes are cool, though; you can make fries from those!

But others… _noooooo!_

Whenever she finishes her meat and her potatoes, she immediately run off to not have to deal with the vegetables, not listening when her Daddy tries to get her to come back and eat her vegetables.

At least, she used to do that… until her Daddy changes things up suddenly.

Suddenly she's only getting the potatoes and veggies, and no meat. And her Daddy installs a new rule.

"From now on, you're not getting _any_ meat until you finish your vegetables."

Of course she's upset. Of course she tries to go against it. Of course she tries to plead with him.

But nope.

Her Daddy doesn't budge, and he doesn't leave the table so she can sneak the veggies away into the trash (as she's once done). He just sits there and waits, and no matter how long it seems to take, he doesn't look like he's going to let her get out of it.

She wants to cry. She really does… but at the same time, she's _hungry!_

So, it's with shaking hands that she forces herself to put the veggies in her mouth, followed by a scoop of potatoes, veggies again, and then potatoes, until _finally_ it's all gone. And then finally she gets to have the meat and she's never been happier with it.

Afterward, though, her Daddy makes it easier for her… maybe because she had so much difficulty with it before? He gives her a little more potatoes and he shows her how to mash them and the veggies together. Then he makes a small mountain of it, uses the fork to hollow it out, and then he fills the hole with gravy. And Regina watches in awe at the 'volcano' he's just made of it, before she breaks open the side and giggles as the 'lava' pours out from it.

She finds that it's not so bad like this; the potatoes hide the veggies and the gravy kinda drown out the rest of it, making it bearable to swallow. Eventually, she doesn't even need her Daddy to keep the meat set aside for her and she eats the potatoes and veggies before going to her meat without any prodding.

And gradually, she starts to eat them both separately.

* * *

"Regi, what are you doing?" Domi asks curiously as he watches her mashing her veggies and potatoes together, moving them into a small heap.

"Making a volcano," Regina says casually.

Domi doesn't get it, of course. He's just sitting there across from her as she pours the gravy in the hole she's dug into the mountain. It's silly and it's childish, but whatever; she just wants to be silly for a moment and regain some of her past memories.

"You know, you don't _have_ to eat your veggies if you don't want them," Domi points out.

"Oh I wish; Dad'll know if I don't."

She says nothing more on the matter as she scoops up a forkful of potatoes and veggies, draped in gravy, and silently pops it in her mouth.

She _still_ doesn't like vegetables… but she's learned to tolerate them enough to eat them.


	6. Corra

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 773 - M.E. 774

 **Summary:** When something seems to have become impossible, you're supposed to strive for a way to make it possible again. This is the first time Regina experiences that phrase.

* * *

 _ **Corra  
**_

There are a few things that six year old Regina _really_ loves doing. She loves sleeping in (something her dad's scolded her for in the past), she loves running (and Gladdy's happy to provide her a 'challenge', though she never makes it far), and she loves camping. They don't do it often, but when they do, Regina feels like they're on the adventure of a lifetime. No day of camping is ever the same, and so she's always looking forward to the moment they can go out and camp.

One of the many things that (usually) goes awry, is their car breaking down. Which was actually how they ended up having to camp out for the first time in the first place. Thankfully, it doesn't happen much (anymore), which allows them to enjoy the camping trips as intended. But that doesn't mean everything always goes as planned.

So too as they're setting up camp a little ways away from Hammerhead after meeting with Miss Cindy. There's a tremor and Regina almost cries out, but her dad's there to calm her down, thankfully, by wrapping his arms around her shoulders. Gladio's assessing if there's any damage after the tremor fades, and when there isn't any, they all sigh in relief.

But it's short-lived when Regina hears a cry from afar. No one else seems to notice at first, at least not until she points it out. They all then hurry off to the sound, certain that their camp will be safe for the time being. And when they do find the one responsible for the noise, Regina feels herself freezing up at the sight.

There's a girl there, maybe a few years older than Regina, sitting up as best as she can, pushing feebly at a large rock that is now on top of her leg. It's likely fallen on top of her when the tremor happened, and now she's trapped there, unable to move it. Gladio and her dad immediately go over to help, and they know they have to hurry, because the sun is going to set soon, so the daemons will be coming out any minute.

Iggy is trying to calm her down, ensuring that she actually stays in place, and only Regina feels like she's a burden, but she sticks close to Iggy, hoping that her presence there beside him will make things better somehow.

The rock is heavier than it looks, her dad exclaims after a while, and Gladdy is saying something about that he has to stop complaining and just keep pushing, but no matter how they push, the rock just isn't moving and panic is starting to set in. They can't keep trying for long, she knows; they need to get the rock to move somehow.

But the girl talks then and it makes her dad and Gladdy turn to her with their eyes wide. Regina doesn't understand what she meant, but she said something about not moving the rock and about moving her instead. That seems kind of silly, because how can she move if the rock is on her leg? But Gladio doesn't like the idea, and he's very loud about it, but the girl insists, saying that it's the only way to get out of there before the sun sets entirely.

Her dad is biting his lip, like he does when he's nervous about something, and Iggy is frowning, while Gladdy is growling. Ignis is suddenly giving orders, and while her dad and Gladio look at him strangely for a moment, they don't question him and start moving.

Regina watches as her dad pulls out a handkerchief and, strangely enough, puts it in the girl's mouth and ties it behind her head, while Gladio does the same with her leg, though he uses his belt, instead. She doesn't understand what they're doing, but Iggy pulls her aside suddenly and pulls her up against him. She tries to break away, but Iggy isn't letting go.

She twists her head, barely, and then she sees Gladdy pulling out the big sword he carries with him to deal with daemons. But what is he doing with that now? There aren't any daemons around…

She hears her dad say something to the girl, and her voice is muffled because of the handkerchief so she doesn't know what either of them are saying, but she can see Gladio raising his sword high above him.

…what is he…?

Then the sword comes down, and there's a sound that she doesn't recognize, but it's followed by a loud, though muffled scream and red spurts over Gladio's face and Regina freezes. She's not a little girl anymore; she knows what the red stuff is now… and she knows what it means…

 _Blood…_

She doesn't know exactly what happens after; she might've passed out. That happens sometimes when she sees a lot of blood, though she doesn't understand why. Thankfully there aren't any dreams then, and her next conscious thought is waking up in the tent, cuddled up against her dad's chest as he lazily but gently rubs her back.

When he sees her awake, he smiles and greets her softly, kissing her forehead and asking her softly if she's feeling better. She feels a little better, but she's still confused about what happened, though she doesn't ask. She gets something to eat from Iggy (yummy!), before she takes notice of the girl resting at the far side of the tent.

She's gasping, a wet towel resting over her eyes and forehead, and she's also gripping at her blanket until her knuckles turn white. She looks like she's in pain, but Regina's too scared to ask why, because she remembers the blood, remembers the muffled scream, and it doesn't help her fears at all. So Regina remains curled up against her dad, and he doesn't complain or say she's being silly. She appreciates that very much.

She looks to where the girl's legs… well, _leg_ … is under the blanket.

"…is she okay, Daddy?"

Her dad doesn't answer right away, before he smiles softly and runs a hang through her hair. "She will be… she will be…"

Gladdy comes in then, and he says he's called Miss Cindy and she'll come pick the girl up in the morning, since it's too dangerous to get her to Hammerhead in the middle of the night. Regina's not sure if the girl's heard, or if she's even awake… but she can't help but hope that she'll be okay…

* * *

She wakes up in the middle of the night to the sound of someone groaning and whimpering, and Regina lifts her head sleepily to look around. She notices the girl turning and moving, trying to get comfy, and every time she's hissing and whimpering and just… uncomfortable.

Regina knows the feeling all too well… and maybe that's why she moves then.

She moves away from her dad, who's too sleepy to even notice, and she crawls over to the girl. When she's there, she shakes the girl lightly by the shoulder and she groans, before she wakes, rolls over and moves the towel, looking out through weary, dark eyes.

"…are you okay?"

She doesn't answer immediately. Is she still tired? Did Regina mess up…?

But then the girl smiles softly, but it's not a happy smile, though it's not a bad smile 'either'. "Define 'okay'… if you mean 'alive', then, yeah, I'm okay… if you mean 'bout my leg…well…" She laughs softly, but she doesn't sound happy. "I won't be able to run for a while now…"

"…run?"

She hums softly. "Yeah… I like running… I'm good at it, too… well, used to be, anyway…" she murmurs. "Won't be doing that anytime soon anymore…"

Regina isn't sure what she can say, so she pouts softly. She wants to help… but she doesn't know how…

"…hey."

"…huh?"

"What's your name, sweetie?"

"…Regina."

She's not supposed to tell her name to strangers, but this girl is okay, right?"

"Heh… nice. I'm Ternio. You can call me Terry, if you want."

"Terry?"

"Yeah… everyone does, really."

"…kay."

Regina's finally able to smile again, and Terry's reaching over and ruffling her hair lightly. They talk quietly for a while longer, with Regina talking about what she likes to do, but mostly she's asking about Terry and how she likes (or liked…) to go running, and what she does other than that. Regina doesn't have a real sense of time yet, but when she starts to yawn, Terry laughs softly.

"You should go to bed, Regi."

"Kay…" She mumbles, scampering back to her dad. Once she's curled up against his side, she looks over to Terry. "Are you sad…?"

"Sad…?"

"That you can't run anymore…"

"…Regi," Terry says with a small smile, "who says I can't anymore?"

"But… you can't run with one leg…"

"Well… if something's become impossible… you just _make_ it possible again."

"…how?"

"Oh, Regi, just wait and be amazed; you'll be struggling to catch up before long."

* * *

Miss Cindy picks Terry up in the morning, and she and Regina promise to meet again later to have a race, even though Regina's not sure how that's going to work with Terry only having on leg left… well, half a leg, really. But she promises anyway, and she watches as Miss Cindy drives off, and her dad pulls her back up to the Haven for breakfast. But even as she eats, Regina can't help but think on Terry's words;

"If something's become impossible, you just _make_ it possible again."

She's never heard of those words, but then again, there's a lot she hasn't heard of at 6 years of age. She _does_ , however, know that, if she wants to make due on her promise to Terry, she can't go lounging away. So every so often, she now goes out with her dad, running around the block a few times. She can't go too far or too fast yet, and so her dad has to carry her most of the way, but she's getting there. Every time, she's getting a little better, until, _finally_ , she makes the whole block all on her own.

She doesn't see Terry for another year, when they happen to be in Lestallum, and Regina is surprised when she's walking. She has one of the medical poles or whatever they're called tucked under her arm to help her, but she's walking again, by herself. But Regina thinks the most surprising fact is that she has her leg again… what?

When they sit down at the small diner, all five of them, and talk about how she's been doing, Terry says she's doing okay, that she's holding up and walking further and further every day. Regina asks how Terry has her leg again, and this makes Terry laugh. She reaches down then and, with a little bit of fiddling, _removes_ the leg… only it's not real and Regina's breathing a little easier.

Terry explains that it's a fake to replace the one she's lost, and when Regina knocks on it, it's hard and kinda sounds like the wood walls from back home when she thunks her head against it by accident. There's a cushion in it where it's attached to what's left of her leg, kinda like the bottom of a shoe, so it doesn't feel too bad. Terry just says it's taken a bit to get used to not having feeling in the one leg, because she said that, for a while, she still felt like the leg was there.

"In fact… I think I like… fell out of my bed three times in the morning 'coz I tried standing on both legs when I hadn't attached the thing yet!"

Terry is laughing, as are the others, but Regina isn't sure if it's okay to do so, though she does it anyway. Once the laughter is gone, Terry says she's getting a new leg once she's used to this, and she to be able to run on that one once she's gotten used to it. Of course, it'll take a bit, but Terry's already practicing by speed-walking whenever she can.

Regina is surprised, and amazed, and in awe and just… Terry is amazing!

When they get home, Regina pushes herself to get better and better. She's not going to lose to Terry!

A year later, they catch Terry running around Lestallum.

* * *

"C'mon, slowpoke! Try to _at least_ give me a little bit of a challenge!"

"D-dammit…! I-it's this sand, alright?!"

This is ridiculous! Regina's struggling to keep up with Terry in the sand, and sure, there's that age difference and the difference in experience, but Terry's running on a damn prosthetic… and is _winning!_

How the hell?!

The finish is within sight, and Regina's already out of breath despite having run laps around Lestallum with ease before then. She's blaming the sand for holding her back and sinking below her feet; it's like she has to give herself an extra push of energy with every step, and that extra push is draining her much faster than she would've liked.

She stops sprinting and settles on simple running for a little bit so she can collect a little more breath, but the Six be damned, how is this so _hard?!_

"Hey c'mon! I'm gonna win, Regi!" Terry taunts with a laugh, short red curls bouncing around her head.

"Oh no you're NOT!" Regina nearly screams as she gathers all her remaining strength and stamina and bursts forward after her.

She beats Terry by a fraction of a second and she collapses to the sand with a laugh when she does, not caring if Terry is laughing at her expense; she beat Terry ( _finally!_ ) and that's more than enough for her now.


	7. KWEH!

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 769

 **Summary:** Regina is only 2 when Prompto takes her to Wiz's Chocobo Post for the first time… and she succeeds in making him do something he hasn't done much of in a long time.

* * *

 _ **KWEH!  
**_

Prompto never likes to leave Regina alone for too long when he has to go on hunts to deal with some pesky daemons, and sometimes the trips take him so long, that he fears that when he returns home, he'll be too exhausted to even see his little girl before conking out. For this reason he often takes her with him to the sites of his hunts, usually with either Gladio, Ignis or Iris coming along so that he can focus on the hunt. Even though they had all agreed he didn't have to go hunting and that they could (and would) help with whatever he needed.

But that didn't cut it for Prompto; he doesn't want to have to keep relying on his friends only because he's got a two-year-old girl waiting for him at home. He doesn't _want_ to leave her behind, of course, but he knows he needs to keep them both fed to the best of his abilities. And sure, he appreciates his friends' concerns, but he still needs to keep busy, otherwise he'll get out of shape real fast.

So, on a lovely morning after little Regina's had her breakfast and Ignis and Gladio have shown up to join him, they get into Prompto's car and drive off to Wiz's Chocobo Post to deal with a number of Behemoths making the area unsafe for the Chocobos. While certainly nowhere near Deadeye's level—or the Behemoth Tyrant that had later claimed Deadeye's old nest as its own—Behemoths were a threat regardless of size.

Regina's in the backseat with Ignis, in her baby seat, of course, and she's calling out to the blind man as he wriggles his fingers just barely out of her reach, and it makes Prompto smile to himself. She's a ridiculously fast learner, having learned to say "Iggy" and "Gladdy" after only her fourth time meeting both of them, and she'd been walking since she was six months old…

Or what he assumed to be six months, anyway. That's how long she'd been with him.

He still doesn't know who the parents are, or how old Regina really is, and it worries him, somewhat… because a small part in the back of his mind is saying that her real parents might come looking for her at some point to take her away from him. He's grown really attached to her in the two years she's been with him, and he considers her to be his only beacon of light in the darkness his life had become after losing Noctis. Losing one loved one had been difficult enough for him, and he fears that, if he has to give her up as well, he will shut down completely…

Thankfully, no one has come forth yet, and he hopes it will stay this way, even though he knows she'll have questions later.

When they arrive at the Chocobo Post, it isn't until Prompto is getting out of the car that he realizes that this is the first time he's brought Regina here. He's never really liked coming back here ever since they lost Wiz in that first year of the longest night. The place just hasn't been the same, even with others taking it over and keeping the name as it was to show their respect for the kind owner who had been so thoughtful, so caring, so loving of the Chocobos, both in and out of the land he technically owned.

The Chocobos had barely survived the first year, but they'd managed by escaping to the well-lit racing tracks, where the daemons hadn't dared to move in on them, until they'd been able to move the birds to the safety of Lestallum until things ended. Among them had been the small Black Chocochick that they had saved from the daemons only a year prior, when the sun had still shone down on the world and that was a big relief to Prompto. The little girl didn't deserve to be ended so soon after escaping death's clutches so shortly before.

He moves to Regina's side and opens the door, after which he starts on her seatbelt and pulls her out of the car, setting her down when she starts lightly kicking at the air; a clear signal she wants to be put down and walk. They walk slowly, but that clearly isn't fast enough for little Regina as she toddles along, and Prompto smiles as he sticks close to her, just to make sure she doesn't fall and hurt herself.

She _immediately_ goes for the nearest Chocochick walking around with a sound of awe, and it waddles away, of course, but Regina gives chase with a chipper cry, but Prompto picks her up before she can stumble after and hurt herself and she whines unhappily in the hold, making him chuckle as he hugs her close. She immediately snuggles close, because Regina loves hugs. Well… _his_ hugs, anyway.

Gladio's a little too rough and she tends to squirm away quickly, and Ignis doesn't hug much to begin with, but the few times he had were short and that seemed fine with Regina. Iris is also a definite no, even though she's not as rough as her brother with her hugs. She is, however, easily excitable and Regina doesn't seem to appreciate that too much. Cindy just pinches her cheeks (lightly) and she always lets Regina do it back to her with a giggle. With Prompto, though, it sometimes takes him a minute or two to convince her to let him go. Almost as if she's afraid he'll be gone soon.

She's grown very dependent on him, and in a way, he likes it. He likes to have someone to look out for, someone to come back to after a hard day's work. Someone who's eagerly awaiting his return and greeting him with a hug and a kiss…

He pushes aside some of the _other_ thoughts this brings along; he doesn't want to worry his little girl.

Gladio asks if they're going straight into the hunt, but Prompto decides they need to do one more thing before they set out. He carries Regina to the pens, where their Chocobos are walking around and just enjoying their time outside in the open air.

"See those birds, Regina?" he asks with a smile, as he regards the girl as she watched the large birds. "Those are Chocobos. Can you say Chocobo?"

The small girl looks at him with a fist in her mouth, something she does when she's looking around, and she blinks a bit.

"…coco?"

He laughs at the attempt. Not bad for her first time. "Almost; Choco _bo_. Can you say that? 'Cho-co-bo'."

"…Coco!"

Prompto can't help but laugh again. She sounds so sure of herself, as if she knows she's saying it right but her Daddy's just being silly.

And he catches Gladio and Ignis smiling from the corner of his eyes, but he ignores the looks. He knows they were worried, of course, with the way he'd retreated from their 'group' shortly after the dawn returned. They'd tried to keep in touch, tried to keep things glued together, but Prompto just… hadn't been feeling it. Hadn't been feeling anything, really…

Until Regina came into his life.

"Okay, sweetie; Daddy has to go to work now. Stay with Iggy and be a good girl, okay?"

"Yeah!"

Prompto smiles as he sets her down and helps Ignis to take her hand. She immediately stands on her toes so Ignis doesn't have to bend so far and she almost tips over, but Ignis pulls her up again easily, and she obviously knew he would, since she's giggling conspicuously. Regina is much smarter than some would give her credit for, and he's glad, because it means he doesn't have to worry too much. He still does the worrying from time to time, though; because really, what parent doesn't?

"Right… Shall we go, Gladio?"

* * *

The sun is setting by the time Prompto and Gladio return from their hunt, and Prompto is _so_ glad he took Regina with him today. Had he not done so, he would've never made it home before dark to see her. He's bushed, has a few scratches, but they're minor and they don't bleed too much. A few black ribbons and he looks as good as new.

Iggy's already in the hotel with Regina, who's scampering around under the blankets and pillows like a little caterpillar while Ignis is trying to find her under it. It's this little game the pair of them developed over time (one that Ignis always won, by the by), and it keeps the girl's mind away from where her Daddy might be instead of being with her. Gladio's chuckling as Ignis' hands chase after her over the blankets that she's hiding under, and then he's got her and she's squealing and laughing as Ignis lifts her up and she's kicking and tittering with laughter and Prompto can feel his face almost splitting from the grin on his face.

When Regina finally spots him and calls for him ("Daddy-Daddy!" Always in twos after he's been away a while…) he laughs and walks over, taking her from Ignis and hugging her close. "Hello again, princess," he quips, kissing her forehead. "What did you and Iggy do?"

"Coco! _Kweh!_ "

Prompto stares at the girl as she releases a _very_ accurate Chocobo chirp and she's giggling and going ' _Kweh!_ ' over and over, because it makes her Daddy's face weird, he's sure, until he can no longer hold himself in and he laughs.

He hasn't laughed like this in ages… not since he lost Noctis in favor of the dawn they now all walked under once again. He feels like he'd been stuck in time and, despite the light outside, he just hadn't felt like it was doing him any good. It had only reminded him of what he'd lost. He'd lost all will to laugh for months after that horrible day…

And it feels so good to do it again after so long.

He kisses his little princess on the forehead and she lets out another ' _Kweh!_ ', making him laugh ( _again!_ He's going to pass out from lack of oxygen like this…) and he hugs her tight. "I love you, Regina."

The response he gets is not unexpected… and it draws another laugh from him.

"Luv yous, Daddy! _Kweh!_ "


	8. Papa

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 773

 **Summary:** Iris' words are like a jackhammer to his heart… but he knows she has a point. He just wishes he didn't have to… and just wishes his daughter wasn't reacting so violently to it…

* * *

 _ **Papa  
**_

Prompto's always known the subject would come up eventually… has tried to prepare himself for whenever… well, whoever decided to bring it up, brought it up. Turns out, Iris had decided it to be vitally important and, in a way, he could understand her point of view, but at the same time, he's _not_ looking forward to it.

"Regina needs a _mother_ , Prompto."

Four words… that's all. And yet Prompto feels as if those words have condemned him. It's difficult to put into words, but the words hurt. As much as he'd tried to move on, tried to make a family with someone else, there's just never been anyone out there able to fill the gap that had been left behind after…

He sighs and runs a hand through his hair. "Iris… I know you're worried, but…"

"No buts! The poor girl needs more than just you, Prompto," Iris pointed out. "You know we'd help whenever, but she needs some female motivation in her life, too."

"Doesn't she get that from you, Cindy and Aranea, though?"

"You _know_ what I mean!"

Of course he does… he's not stupid, but he doesn't _want_ to admit to it. Because it would mean he'd have to give up a piece of himself, to give Regina something she undoubtedly needed. Sure, he's done plenty of that already, but _this_ … he wasn't sure if he was prepared to give _this_ up…

"I'll… think about it."

That seems to please Iris, as the subject is then dropped for the time being. He doesn't bring it up around Regina yet; he doesn't know how she'll react to the news or just the prospect, really. For the bigger part, he just tries to move on as normal and make it seem like there's nothing wrong. And for the majority of the time, he manages just fine and he's able to not think on it…

But when he's reading her a story one day before bedtime, he notices how her eyes seem particularly drawn to the family that the story is about… or more accurately, the two parents.

"…Sweetie?" he asks when the story ends and she's cuddling under the blankets.

"Yeah…?" She sounds hesitant, he notices, as if she's catching onto his own hesitation.

"…Are you happy with me?" he asks, trying not to sound _too_ desperate.

Her eyes widen, almost comically so, and the little six-year-old looks like a deer caught in the headlights of a car. "Did… did I something bad?" she asks worriedly.

" _No!_ No, sweetie, of course not," Prompto assures her, and he curses himself for formulating the question so poorly. "I just…" He can't bring himself to say what he wants to say, because the very idea _hurts_. "I just want to be sure you're happy… I don't want you to be sad, okay?"

"I'm not sad," Regina says innocently, but the words mean the world to him when she smiles and adds: "I love you, Daddy."

"I love you, too, princess," Prompto murmurs as he lightly kisses her forehead. "Do you want me to leave the hall light on?"

"I'm okay, Daddy."

"Okay, sweetheart. Good night."

"Good night."

He leaves her room then, leaves the door open, and, with a hint of hesitation, he flicks the hall light off before he moves into his own room for his own rest. He isn't going to sleep right away, because he has a lot to think about. And he knows there's only one way to do that properly

He goes to his bookcase, mostly empty except for some heavy photograph albums, and take a very particular album from the second shelf. He goes to his bed, sits down on the edge, and flips it open. The pictures are well-preserved through the magic of plastic, and they haven't lost their colors (yet), and this helps him to think back… to a time when things were so much easier.

Prompto smiles at the photo of their group of four in front of the Regalia (god, he _did_ miss the old girl…) just at the start of their journey. Cindy had taken the shot for them, one of the few times he ever let someone else touch his camera. He'd only let her because he'd trusted her to be gentle with it. The pictures that follow list their whole journey from Hammerhead chronologically, to Galdin Quay, to Lestallum, and across the many, many dungeons in search for the Royal Tombs before they left for Altissia…

He stops at a picture of them dealing with the haunted painting in the depths of Altissia, running his fingers along the picture, having captured Noctis just after he had finished warp striking the spiritual apparition. There was a light, blue glow surrounding him, making him seem almost more ethereal than the spirit they'd been fighting. He loved these kinds of pictures; the ones where he could catch just the hint of magic thrumming through Noctis, visible even in the still images he'd made…

" _Hey… this one's pretty good._ "

Prompto shuts his eyes and breathes heavily, and then closes the album. Thinking about the past hurt much more than it probably should, but Prompto can't help it; 16 years just isn't enough for him to forget about the lifetime of fun he's had with the once-crown prince of Insomnia, now King… even if he isn't here to formally accept or even appreciate the title. Everyone knew of him now; the Chosen King who had given up everything to save them… given up his life to bring back the dawn…

But no one _knew_ Noctis the way Prompto once did…

They only knew Noctis as the confident man who could do anything and never faltered. They didn't know the times that Noctis was unsure… a trembling mess in the back of the car when the news of Insomnia falling fully dawned on him… or of the anger and hurt he felt when he learned of his father's death, and that _he_ had barely escaped the same death, only because he was sent by his own father to go to Altissia.

No one knew of Noctis' past… no one knew what he was _really_ like…

He stands up and puts the album away. He's never had the guts to go all the way through the album; he fears he'll break down in a mess of tears and broken sobs, thinking about his lost friend, and he can't have that anymore. There were times when he would have done that, but he can't do this anymore.

Not with Regina so close down the hall.

He takes out another album, a smaller one, but already it's almost entirely filled. He flips through it for a moment, lingering on a few precious memories and he smiles as he looks at the smiling girl in the photo, sometimes joined by a few of his friends, but mostly with himself or alone. Any picture he sees of her, it instantly brings a smile to his face, even if she isn't smiling because she's curious about something and furrowing her little brows with her hand to her mouth to try and figure out what she's seeing.

Her bright smiles have become less wide over the years, but it's still a smile he can call 'happy' as she stands and smiles at the camera, one of her arms around the head of a Chocobo as it nuzzles her cheek. Or when she's on his shoulders and they're walking through Lestallum during the twilight. A very silly little 'selfie', but he just hadn't had the heart to do away with it.

He doesn't see what Iris seems to see; he doesn't see a girl longing for a mother. He just sees a girl having the time of her life every step of the way…

But then he comes to one of the last pictures and he pauses.

It was a picture of Regina and Cindy, when Prompto had gone on a hunt with Gladio and Ignis near Hammerhead for some extra ingredients for Takka. It hadn't been a long hunt, but when they came back, Regina was curled up on the bench outside of Cindy's garage with her head on the blonde's lap, sleeping peacefully.

And yet… there was a look on her face that… Prompto hadn't even noticed before…

He can't place it, but he knows he's seen the look somewhere before… and then it hits him…

It was on Noctis' face that he'd seen a similar look; the first night after they had learned of Insomnia's fall. While he had slept in the tent that night, just outside of the Crown City's walls, he'd had a similar look on his face as he slept, and Prompto hadn't known what the look meant at first, but as he'd laid there, thinking, he realized…

Longing… regret… sadness… anger… all of that boiled into one… a mixture created from losing everything he'd ever known and all he wanted to have back so badly…

He hadn't made a picture of it, then… but the look had stuck with him regardless… as if it was burned across the back of his eyelids…

He blinks, and he's surprised when a tear rolls down his face, and Prompto quickly wipes it away. He breathes heavily, doing his best to hold the rest back as he closes the album and puts it away. As he goes to his bed and lies down, he can't help but wonder if, maybe, Iris was right all along…

Prompto falls asleep that night thinking of his little girl…

He doesn't want her making that face anymore… and he promises himself that he'll do whatever if it means ensuring that his princess is happy…

* * *

Prompto confronts Iris on the matter before she can bring it up again, saying he's prepared to try. She's confused at frst, but then she smiles and exclaims she's happy to hear that, and that she's sure Regina will appreciate it as well before long. He hopes so, too, and hopes he can ensure that that look on Regina's face will no longer appear.

They don't actually tell Regina of it; Prompto because he isn't entirely sure how to tell her, and Iris because she wants the transition to be as natural as possible, even though it would be somewhat forced on them both.

Iris introduces her to a friend of hers, and she's nice enough, but Prompto isn't sure if he'd be able to last the rest of his life with her. But this isn't about _him_ , he reasons with himself; this is for Regina, and if it helps her, he'll make the required sacrifice without looking back.

Regina seems confused when the woman greets them along with Prompto and Iris after she's been out in Lestallum, looking for new friends, and while the woman's nice enough to her, Regina doesn't respond favorably. She doesn't answer the woman and doesn't shake her hand. Instead she goes around her in an arch and sticks close to Prompto, looking at her with a look that says clearly she's displeased. She doesn't talk to her unless she really has to, but Prompto chalks it up to him telling her not to speak to strangers, and he hopes she'll warm up gradually.

But she doesn't…

In fact, she only seems to be growing more and more resentful each time, despite the woman's attempts to have her warm up to her. Eventually, Prompto decides to not continue the attempt any further, because Regina is completely against her.

Iris is a little upset about the failed attempt, of course, but she doesn't give up. A week later, she has someone else lined for him. She's nice, sure, and certainly not a bad person… but Regina is, again, not pleased.

In fact, she seems to be even more displeased than last time. She's not saying anything, but it's obvious that she's now giving the woman a hard time on purpose. To make matters worse, she even starts wandering Lestallum for longer than she normally would whenever they're there, and by the time night falls, she's already waiting for them by the car, as she's been there the whole time.

Another failed attempt, yet Iris is not deterred from her mission. This whole cycle continues for almost three months, but with every new woman, Regina becomes more and more vicious toward them. It might not have been obvious to most, but Prompto could tell that everything bad that was happening to the women—from frogs in their bags to simple things like their meals having far too much salt in them—was all due to Regina, if her small, sickly bemused smirks whenever the women reacted hysterically to them were any indication.

And the few who respond to these things with accusations and threats of hurting her if she continues are immediately cast out by Prompto, because he's not going to stand for anyone threatening his little girl, even if she _did_ do something she (probably) shouldn't have done. He would be the one to dish out a punishment if he thought she'd done something inexcusable… but in this case, he secretly wants to hug her for ensuring he doesn't have to continue this charade any longer.

And Prompto realizes soon after that he has to stop this permanently… he can't do this any further, because it's become clear that Regina is violently against this. Much to Iris' annoyance and dismay.

* * *

"You can't be serious…!"

"I am, Iris," Prompto says firmly. "In case you haven't been paying attention, Regina hasn't been reacting very well to this… I'm not going to put her through this any longer."

Iris is glaring at him, obviously displeased. "Does she even know what this is about?!"

"That's not important, Iris!"

" _Of course it IS, Prompto!_ " she insists sharply, and he jumps. "If you don't tell her this is for her own good, _of course_ she's gonna act cross over it! You need to tell her what it's for!"

"Iris," Ignis is saying then, speaking up from where he is sitting, finally speaking up about the whole thing that has been going on for much too long (in Prompto's mind, anyway). "If she knew what this was about, there would be no natural bonding. She would likely force herself through it, which will only result in making her feel miserable."

He wants to thank Ignis for the input but he leaves it for the moment; it can wait until Iris has been convinced that this isn't working out the way she wants it to. He's glad right now that Gladio has taken Regina for a run around the block for her training, because he doesn't want her to hear how much her daddy's arguing over their future right now. Because no matter what Iris says, this isn't just about Regina; this is also about him.

He keeps trying to explain to Iris that this isn't working, that it's a bad idea and that it has to stop, and Ignis is helping him trying to explain, but Iris remains convinced that, in the end, Regina will come and see to reason. Prompto isn't sure, and he keeps telling her this, because he _knows_ his little princess a lot better than Iris does, but her argument is that Iris knows what _girls_ want much better than him, and okay, he can't argue with that, but, as Ignis points out, Regina certainly isn't like most girls and it's ridiculous to assume that all girls want the same things.

Prompto's getting a headache from all this and he just wants to send Iris away, but he can't because she's waiting for Gladio to come back, and with how she's going on and on, it sounds like she's got every intention of informing Regina about what they've been trying to get her to ease up on things. And while Prompto knows that Iris will be civil with Regina for sure, he can't help but fear that this is going to turn into an all-out war because he knows that girls can get into very nasty catfights, and he's _not_ looking forward to that.

As much as he and Ignis try to argue their point, it's no use, and they're _still_ going when Gladio comes back with Regina on his back, since she'd likely exhausted herself somewhere halfway around (maybe earlier, but Prompto likes to give her a little bit more credit) and of course they're both confused. Prompto still tries to convince Iris one last time to not do it as Gladio sets Regina down again, since she's recovered enough already, but Iris doesn't listen and approaches Regina and Prompto tries _so_ hard not to let his anxiety and his fear show on his face.

This can't end well… there's _no_ way this is going to end well!

"Say, Regina, honey?" Iris says, all sweet and honey despite the harsh words she'd just been throwing at him and Ignis, and he hears the blind man scoff slightly from the corner. "I have a question for you…"

Regina blinks, and she looks a bit confused, but then her eyebrows furrow and Prompto has a feeling that she already has her suspicions about what Iris' question is about. She doesn't act too different, though, and instead she asks simply: "What?"

"Well, sweetie, how would you like it if Daddy got you a Mommy?"

Oh. Em. Gee.

Prompto almost wants to smack Iris up the head for the FAR too direct question! The way she's framing it would almost make it seem like it was _Prompto's_ idea in the first place, when _she_ was the one who even brought it up! He's trying to convey to Regina that he's nothing to do with it, that it wasn't his idea, from behind Iris' back when the smaller girl looks at him with a surprised, almost shocked look on her face, but he isn't sure if he's able to get his point across as well. Though he certainly does hope so.

Her shock slowly fades away, though, and she's frowning as she then turns to Iris.

"I don't want one."

Prompto's sure he's staring, but he's even more sure that Iris is even more surprised, even if he can't see her face.

"But sweetie—"

" _I don't want one!_ " Regina repeats with her lips curled back and her teeth ground together, an obvious display of anger. "I'm _fine_ without one!"

"Regina!" Iris says, a little firmer now. "Listen to me; we're trying to—"

" _I DON'T CARE!_ " Regina suddenly screams, and Iris actually stumbles back onto her bum in surprise, and Prompto has to try very hard to contain his laughter because, yeah, she kind of deserved that. "I'm not dumb! I don't need a mom! I don't _want_ a mom! I'm just fine with Daddy here!"

"Regina!"

" _I said I **don't need a mom!** _ Daddy and Papa are enough!"

…

Silence follows her words, and it isn't until the silence has gone on for almost a minute and everyone (who can) is staring at her that Regina's eyes widen almost comically as she suddenly seems to realize what she's just said. She tries to say something, but she's unable to get anything out, and she eventually turns and runs, dashing up the stairs even when Prompto calls after her to wait, dashing across the hall before she disappears into her room, the door slamming shut behind her with an almost impossibly loud bang.

The silence continues for a long time, with no one quite sure how to break it, but everyone (or at least, Gladio and Iris…) is now staring at him in question, but he's shaking his head, saying without words he doesn't know what she meant.

And he doesn't; there's never been a moment that he can recall that he's ever shown any real, romantic interest in anyone around Regina. Even when Regina wasn't around, there just wasn't anyone who'd been able to catch his eye (though he certainly hasn't been expecting anyone to), least of all a _man_. In fact, he hasn't even come around to teaching Regina that a relationship like that was totally okay, since he isn't entirely sure how to even start that subject…

But he may just have to figure out soon, now…

* * *

Gladio eventually takes Iris home, and Ignis leaves with them, telling him to be gentle with Regina before he leaves, but really, he doesn't need to be told that. Once everyone is gone, he takes a moment to breathe, though.

How does he do this…?

He spends a few moments just leaning against the door after everyone's gone, forehead against the door's material, before he turns and looks toward the door at the top of the stairs. He hasn't heard a peep from Regina ever since she's locked herself into her room, and that's concerning. She's never locked herself in her room like that before, and he's worried that something may be seriously weighing on her mind if she believes this to be the only way to deal with it…

Prompto takes one more deep breath, mentally preparing himself for this, and then he starts up the stairs, slowly but loudly enough that Regina knows he's coming up. He gives her time to prepare herself, too, because he's sure she needs it too.

He stops in front of her door, breathes, and then he raises his hand and, after a moment of hesitation, he knocks, firmly but steadily. No reaction comes, but he knows she's heard him.

"…Regina? Princess?" he calls out to her through the door. "Please open the door?"

No response, still, but he can just picture his little girl biting her lip, unsure if she should or if she should pretend to not have heard him.

"Sweetie, I'm not angry," he reassures her gently. "But we need to talk, so please… open the door?"

He waits patiently, listening for any movement from the room. It takes a little, but he finally hears her moving around the room, and then the door clicks and slowly slides open. Prompto immediately crouches down to her level, even as she remains hiding a little behind the door.

"Hey, sweetie…" he murmurs softly, smiling at her.

"…a…am I in trouble…?" she almost squeaks out.

"No… no, sweetie, of course not… come here," he murmurs, spreading out his arms.

Regina doesn't waste the chance and she scampers forward and almost falls into his embrace, and he envelops her in his arms, holding her gently and running his fingers through her hair, shushing her softly. He doesn't move for a moment, he merely holds her close tenderly, as he listens to her labored breathing as she tries so very hard not to cry. She doesn't like to cry, never has, and she tries to hold it in as much as she can, and he's both proud of her and worried that she might be holding everything in for too long. It's why he often makes her talk about things that he _knows_ are bothering her…

He eventually gets up, still holding onto his little girl, and walks over to the edge of her bed, settling down on the edge with Regina in his lap. For a long time, they just sit there, with Prompto gently rubbing her back. He gives her as long as she needs, and waits for her to speak first, knowing her well enough to know she will do so soon enough.

"…I'm sorry…" she says softly.

"Don't be," Prompto says right after, kissing her temple softly. "You've done nothing wrong; Iris was being way too pushy, there…"

She nods against his chest, huddles a little closer and breathes a little easier, more at ease than she had been only a few minutes ago. This makes Prompto smile as he tucks her head under his chin, rubbing her back softly.

…he doesn't want to bring it up, yet… but he knows he has to…

"…Sweetheart?"

Regina doesn't answer, but she does lift her head. It's enough of an answer for now, he decides.

"Who did you mean when you said 'Papa'?"

She tenses in his arms, and she bites her lip, worries at it and she looks anywhere but at him. He doesn't ask again; he gives her the chance and the time to find the answer she needs, because she obviously doesn't know how to reply to that. It's okay, though; Prompto's prepared to give her however long she needs to find the answer.

"…promise you won't be mad?"

"Why would I be mad, sweetie?"

"…just… promise?"

Is it really so bad? He doesn't know, but he nods his head. "I promise, princess; I won't get mad at you."

This calms her enough, and she relaxes against him further. Still, it takes her a minute before she's able to say anything.

"…I… I took a picture from the picture book…"

Picture book…? …wait… one of his albums?

"What picture?"

Regina squirms out of his arms, and then crawls across her bed toward her pillow, reaches under it, searching, and then she, tentatively, scoots back over. She's holding a photograph in her small hands, holding it so he _just_ can't see what it is, and she's looking at it while biting her lip. She hesitates, but she finally holds it out to him.

Curious now, Prompto gently takes the piece of paper from her and he flips it around to see what has her so worried that she's in trouble.

And his breath catches in his throat.

It's a picture of himself… and Noct… at the outlook of Lestallum, with the setting sun behind them and just barely peeking over the Disc of Cauthess as they both smiled at the camera, himself a little wider (okay, it's grinning, shut up…) than Noct. He shot this one the first time they came to Lestallum, when they'd spent a good part of the day just exploring the city. They'd ended up at the outlook and of course, with the setting sun like that, Prompto hadn't been able to resist the perfect photo-op.

And, of course, he'd insisted on pulling Noct into the shot, too.

…wait…

"…this is who you meant?" he asks, almost not believing what his mind was telling him.

"…I just…" Regina squeaks, wringing her hands in her shirt, twisting the material in ways it shouldn't be twisted. "You… you looked so… so happy… I… I just thought… I… um…"

Prompto almost can't believe what he's hearing… did his little girl figure out the one thing he'd been trying so very hard to keep a secret from everyone for so long? He was sure Ignis might've figured it out as well (it was Ignis, so of _course_ he would've known…), but Prompto was pretty sure they'd not been _that_ obvious…

Because, whether they liked it or not… Noctis was the crown prince of Lucis; there was no way they could've been together. On top of that, the sudden betrothal to Lady Lunafreya hadn't made it any easier and had only made it a requirement to hide the fact that he and Noct were in a relationship with each other since… well, high school.

It'd been so hard… _so_ hard to keep it a secret when King Regis sent them out to Altissia, to prepare for Noct's wedding to Lady Lunafreya… there was almost no time to spend together with Noct alone, because they were always either camping outdoors, or sharing a hotel room with all of them to cut costs…

Prompto had learned on that first day on their trip to treasure each moment he could get alone with Noct… capture as many moments as he could on film… so that, hopefully, he'd have some good memories to fill his dreams when it was all over…

Except… when it ended… he was more devastated than he ever would've believed possible…

"…Regina…" He breathes her name; it's all he can manage.

"I… I'm sorry… I—"

"You don't have to apologize, sweetie," he murmurs, pulling her closer and gently kissing her forehead again. "But… tell me; why exactly do you call him 'Papa'? You've… never met him before, right?"

"I… I know…" Regina murmurs and she sniffles a bit. "But… you… you look so happy… always with him and… and it's never like… like with Iggy or Gladdy… I… I dunno… just… I was just… thinking that…"

He smiles at her, gently moving her messy bangs out of her eyes (he may have to do something about those, but they look so adorable on her). "It's okay, princess…" he assures her. "But I have to ask… you know that… well, families are normally a mother, a father and then kids, right?"

"…uh-huh."

"And it doesn't… bother you that Daddy is happy with… another man?"

"…nuh-uh."

"Really?"

Regina doesn't answer right away, as she seems to think about what she should say about that. But in the end, she says, slowly and unsure: "If… if he makes you happy… then that's okay… right?" The question is so innocent… and the only reason it's even possible for it to be so innocent is because she's a child.

He smiles at her and he nods softly. "Yeah…" he tells her, ruffling her hair. "It doesn't matter… it only matters if you both love each other."

She's smiling again, and he's glad that she appears to be feeling better. And Prompto can't help but smile back at her, feeling as if a great weight has lifted off of his chest, as if he'd been waiting for this very moment where he could admit—not just to himself, but to someone else as well—that he had been (and still was, to be fair) head over heels in love with Noctis Lucis Caelum.

"…um… Daddy?"

"Hm? Yes, princess?"

For some reason, she's hesitating, and he's not sure why, but he remains patient and waits for her to ask what's clearly on her mind.

"…when is Papa coming home?"

…and his heart just… stops… for a brief moment…

 _When is Papa coming home?_

"…Daddy…?"

Regina's voice pulls him back to the present and he blinks – and gasps when he realizes that he's crying. He moves his hand up to wipe the tears away, taking deep breaths to try and calm himself down, but the tears just kept coming, no matter how many times he wiped them away. They just kept coming as the memories just kept resurfacing from the depths of his mind.

And suddenly small hands are reaching for his face and wiping away the tears, and he blinks down at his little girl, and he notices immediately that her own eyes are shining with tears, even though she's trying so very hard to hold them back. And he realizes then that—oh Six…—she already knows…

She knows he's _not_ coming back…

"H-honey… sweetie… I…" He tries to talk… he really does… but… he can't… "Papa is… that is… he's…"

He can't say it… he just… _can't_ …

Prompto takes a shaky breath, and then he reaches out and pulls Regina to him, holding her firmly against him, and she hugs him back just as firmly around his neck, standing in his lap on his thighs on her toes. She continues to hold him as tightly as he's holding her, and both are breathing heavily, trying to contain their tears, but they flow regardless, trailing burning hot rivers along his cheeks, and he feels hers burning into his shoulder.

He doesn't sob, but he cries as he holds on tightly to his little girl, who clings to him in turn, crying just as silently as him, as they both wordlessly comfort each other.

* * *

"…Daddy?"

"Yes?"

They're lying on Regina's bed, huddled up together for support, their tears all shed and their eyes red and puffy, but they say nothing of it and focus instead on each other's company.

"…can… can you tell me 'bout Papa? …please?"

With anyone else… he would've said 'no'. He would've blatantly refused to bring up Noct and the precious memories he has of his old lover, not wanting them to be tarnished or to bring him only pain as he comes to the chilling realization that those moments will never return again. Moments that he holds so dearly to his heart, and cherishes more than anything else he's ever held close to him…

But Regina isn't 'anyone else'…

He smiles softly at his little girl and as he runs a hand through her hair, he murmurs: "Sure, sweetie… what do you wanna know?"

She's smiling again, as she thinks briefly, before she asks, trying _soo_ hard to sound cheery: "How… how did you meet…?"

He laughs softly. "How we met? Well… we met in school once before… but we didn't really become friends until high school, though… coz… well… hahah. Believe it or not, but Daddy used to be _fat_."

"What!? No way!"

"Hahah. Yes way, dear," Prompto laughs, enjoying the look of surprise on her face. "Daddy didn't have many friends… and I only met Papa in passing. We never really talked before… until one day I found this little puppy… he was wounded, so I took him home to take care of him and until I could find his owner…"

Regina hangs on to his every word, and he continues to speak to her of all his experiences with Noct, and he smiles as he remembers it all. And for a moment… he's back there… back with Noct… back when everything was just fine…

And while, despite all the sadness he's gone through so long ago, he wouldn't trade his current situation for the world… he can't help but wish for Regina's 'Papa' to be there with them…

If only… if only…


	9. Time to Study

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 779

 **Summary:** Regina has never liked to study, even with her Dad or Ignis, but there are times when she manages to enjoy it somewhat more.

* * *

 _ **Time to Study  
**_

A loud groan escapes 12 year old Regina as she drops her head on the desk in the library, and she gets a lot of people looking at her angrily for being so loud, but she doesn't much care. By the Six, she _hates_ studying SO much… it's never been something she had a lot of fond memories of. Sure, she's studied how to read and write, even if most of that is wasted by the use of phones (i.e. text messages), but it's still handy in case, you know, the battery dies?

Happened once; wasn't a fun experience.

But anyway, she doesn't like to study, and she never has, even when it's her Dad or Ignis teaching her about things, because she just can't bring herself to care about it enough to care about things that have already happened. She knows it's not a healthy perspective on life, since people learn from their mistakes, but what are they going to accomplish learning about the damn Empire?! It's their fault Lucis is the way it is in the first place, she knows that much…

She's tried to learn a bit about Eos' history, but she just finds herself bored SO quickly, it's a miracle she's ever made it past the first paragraph. The history books just seem to rattle on and on about so many facts in so little time, it's actually shocking to her that _anyone_ has ever made it through them.

"Having some difficulty with history there?"

Regina hums as she looks up from the desk. Standing next to her is a girl who may or may not be a few years older than she is, it's hard to tell. She's not too tall, maybe a little taller than Regina, but certainly shorter than Terry—then again… Terry is _huge!_ —and she's dressed all casual, with the only exception being that short red cape/scarf around her neck, secured at the front with a dark gold clasp. But the thing Regina's most focused on is the calculating green eyes watching her, and the look on her face. It kind of reminds her of Ignis when he's about to lecture her on something.

"What of it?" Regina asks with a small grumble. She really doesn't like people looking down on her like she's stupid.

"Perhaps you should consider looking at it from a different angle."

Regina frowns at the words, unsure of what she means, so she does what her Dad often does and takes things a little _too_ literal. "Oh yeah, how? Like holding the book upside-down?"

The joke doesn't go over well (not at all, in fact), and she frowns and pushes her glasses up a bit further up along her nose. "What I _mean_ is that you might wish to consider a different way to picture what it's trying to tell you. Perhaps even consider things from the other side."

She chortles at those words. "Oh, yeah, coz the Empire was _sooooo_ nice, huh?"

"War is never fought between good and evil; only between two neutrals."

"Yeah… right. I think this one was the exception to that rule…"

The girl rolls her eyes, and dammit she really _does_ remind Regina of Ignis. Not a good thing in the current situation.

She closes the book and decides she's had enough of the history of Eos for the moment, even if she's only been reading for about 20 minutes. She'd rather be reading up on the Six than anything else, even though she already knows everything there is to know about them, or so everyone tells her.

"Here."

"Huh?"

Regina blinks when she's suddenly handed a seemingly random book.

"Perhaps you should consider this one for a change," the girl says simply… right before she turns and walks off.

"Uh… thanks?" Regina gets out, before she mumbles under her breath: "Weirdo…"

She studies the book a little better and she almost groans again. Oh great; it's about the rise and fall of the Line of Lucis. Interesting enough to most, sure, but she's read enough books on them (or tried to, anyway) to know they usually ended up boring the hell out of her. She's got half a mind to figure out where it comes from and just put it back… but she eventually decides to humor the girl a bit and briefly leafs through the book. Yanno, just to see if it has any nice pictures of the royals.

Because if there's one thing she's learned, it's that she loves their attires. Black is like, almost prohibited to be worn excessively by anyone. The only black thing Regina's ever worn was some black shorts, and she's not even allowed to have anything else in black… aside from her Dad's old jacket, but eh. Anyway, she figured out fairly quickly that the royal family of Lucis wears the color _very_ well.

She's almost at the end… and then she freezes.

"…'King Regis Lucis Caelum CXIII'…?" she whispers out the words written below the photo she had just found.

The man displayed there appears to be fairly old, and he looks fairly stern, but at the same time she feels like he was a kind man as well. And reading a small bit of his bio confirms as much. Killed by the Empire when Insomnia fell, when he was trying to keep his people safe from them by signing a treaty to stop the war that had been going on for so long…

He was the last real king of Insomnia, the last of the Line of Lucis… but…

She flips a few more pages, and yeah, sure enough…

"…'King Noctis Lucis Caelum CXIV'…"

She sits down at the desk, flips back to the beginning of the book and she begins to read, her head supported by her left fist as her eyes and fingers move along the lines in the book, soaking the words up like a sponge. The first page is soon flipped, and then another, and like that, Regina remains for a long time, reading in silence, completely absorbed in the book… until her Dad appears behind her and taps her on the shoulder, almost making her yowl in surprise when she looks up.

"Good book there?" her Dad jokes, and she pouts a bit. Of course he knows how she hates reading or studying or… well, anything that doesn't involve moving around to _do_ something, so she doesn't answer the question. "C'mon, let's go home."

"…Sure."

She actually checks out the book from the library, and once she's in the back of the car, she flips the book open to where she left off, pulls her feet onto the seat and continues to read. She ignores how Gladio is trying to goad her, and just brushes off Ignis' questions, responding with quiet hums and brief nods or shakes of the head, but really, she isn't even paying attention to what they're saying. She doesn't even stop reading when they get home.

Regina finishes the whole book within three days.

* * *

"And?"

Regina looks up curiously at the single word from where she was scouring the bookshelves, and finds herself looking at the girl from last time again. It doesn't take her long to figure out what it is she's talking about, though.

"…Meh. Was alright… I guess," she says with a shrug.

She hums in response, adjusting her glasses. "Did you finish it?"

Regina shrugs absently, continuing to look for a book she hasn't tried her hand on yet that might be interesting.

"I see… so you haven't read about how Lord Lumen vanquished the Imperials from the land with just his bow and a handful of soldiers in the War of 56… pity."

…wait what?

"Crossbow."

"Beg pardon?"

"Lumen had a crossbow, not a regular bow. Also, I don't think '1000 men' counts as a 'handful'. …And speaking of, that was in 156, not 56!"

"Oh, so you _did_ read it."

Regina almost smacks herself in the head for that. She walked right into that one…

"I swear… you're like a female version of Iggy, only without the cooking."

"…I'm not sure what you mean, but yes, I do cook."

Well, shit…

"So… do you have a name?" the girl asks suddenly.

Regina regards her for a moment, considers whether or not to tell because she isn't supposed to talk to strangers… but what the hell?

"It's Regina."

"Charmed. I am Libri. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

"Yeah… pleasure, I'm sure…"

* * *

"How… how do you _do_ this?!" Libby is almost complaining, and Regina is almost grinning from her spot on the couch as she watches Ignis and Libby working in the kitchen. "How do you know what and when to do when you…"

She's still hesitant to bring up Ignis' lack of sight, even if it hasn't bothered him in years and he moves around as well as everyone else _with_ sight. It's almost funny to see the always so composed Libby so surprised over something that's so normal (to Regina, anyway). Almost. At most, it's entertaining, but there is _one_ thing that is genuinely 'funny'.

"I'm gonna go out for a bit," she exclaims as she stands up. "Probably gonna run 'round the pens for a bit."

"Very well. Don't get the Chocobos all riled up, will you?" Ignis calls after as he continues blindly chopping up the tomatoes into perfect slices.

"Re- _lax_ , Iggy; it's just a small jog," Regina laughs as she goes outside, leaving the two cooks to their own business.

Her Dad and Gladio are busy hunting for Behemoths, and Ignis has offered to fix dinner for them. It was also the first time Libri had decided to come with them, if only because she'd never actually been to Wiz's Chocobo Post before.

Regina smiles as she walks to the Chocobo pens, petting one as it comes over to her with a small chirp. It's late spring, so it's the perfect time for what she's about to do.

She stretches out a bit, turns her upper body both ways before squatting down a few times, then stretching her legs out with her hands still gripping her knees, before she takes off at a leisurely jog around the pen. And sure enough, a few Chocobos who remember her from her last trips chirp and start to trot along beside her and she smiles at them as she keeps up the pace. It's not really a big lap, but it does help keep the Chocobos in shape, and she's even been requested by Talcott to do it more often when she's in the area.

Well, she's certainly not complaining.

What she _does_ complain about from time to time is Libby's 'study regime'. She seems almost determined to have Regina's head filled with more knowledge than she'll ever need in her life. The thought's appreciated, sure, but it _does_ get annoying from time to time. Even when she's clearly trying to relax and take it easy, Libby seems prepared to make her study almost continuously.

Thankfully, it hadn't taken Regina long to discover her weakness~

* * *

"Regina!"

She smirks a bit as she hears Libby calling her, probably to get her inside for 'study time', but she doesn't move from where she's sitting in the Chocobo pen, petting one of the large birds gently. Only when Libby calls her a second time does she look up.

"Oh hi, Libby, 'sup?" she asks casually.

"Do not 'what's up' me," Libby says immediately as she adjusts her glasses. "If you're done 'jogging', then come inside so we can continue your studies."

"But I'm already studying!" Regina points out.

"Oh? And how are you doing that, hm?"

"I'm studying the effect of prolonged exposure to humans for Chocochicks at their earliest stage in life."

Libby's expression doesn't change a lot, but her eyebrow twitches subtly, and Regina knows she has the brunette's attention, and so she sits a little straighter and purses her lips and releases a small whistle. This immediately makes a small pack of small yellow birds come over, chirping happily as they all crowd around her and she laughs as she pets and rubs their heads one by one. Regina can see Libby biting her lip, gripping the wooden planks of the pen, but she's not moving other than that.

"C'mon, Libby! They're so soft and adorable!" she urges.

"…I'll pass."

"Oh don't be such a stiff! C'mon; these little ones are gonna be all grown up next spring! Gotta take what you can get."

"…"

She's hesitating, Regina can tell, but Regina picks up one of the chicks and nuzzles her nose to its beak, and the chick chirps cheerily. Libby _finally_ caves in and she ducks under the planks and steps into the pen, making her way over quietly.

"C'mon! Sit down!" she calls out, patting the ground, and Libby does, though hesitantly. "Here!" she says then, and she holds out the chick to Libby, who almost yelps and backs up. "Go on; hug her! She's really sweet and she loves hugs!"

She's actually not sure on the hugging part, but Regina likes to believe the chicks don't mind _too_ much… as long as you're not hugging too tightly, of course.

Libby regards the Chocochick like it's about to bite her in the nose, and the chick's looking back with a confused "Kwih?" escaping its little beak, but Regina doesn't move. Eventually, Libby brings up almost shaking hands and takes over the chick, and Regina can see the glitters of awe in her eyes already as she bites her lip to keep from saying anything…

But no luck.

"…so _cuuuuuuute!_ " Libby nearly squeals as she hugs the Chocochick to her, and while it chirps in alarm for a moment, it quickly calms down enough and begins to chirp merrily. And this is the sign for all other chicks to crowd around Libby, who can't stop herself any longer and is going all gaga over the adorable little birds.

The next hour is spent wasting their time in the Chocobo pen until her Dad shows up and takes a picture of her and Libby surrounded by the Chocochicks, with one of them having seated itself on Libby's head. Libby threatens to hurt him over it, but Regina has it laminated and in her own photo album.


	10. Adflictio (requested by akamurasaki)

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 772

 **Summary:** Prompto was once told that parenthood did weird things to your head. It made you act irrationally and had you doing stupid things. Having grown up with parents who'd never been there for him, he'd never believed it… until this very moment…

* * *

 _ **Adflictio (requested by akamurasaki)**_

Prompto's never really had a 'family' of his own. Sure, the Argentum family had taken him in and were kind enough, offering him shelter and food to keep him alive, but little else. It was probably why he'd end up being so chubby at a young age; all that junk food and no one there to scold him for eating nothing else.

And don't even get him started on his _real_ parents… he's _glad_ he's got no memories left of them…

It still surprises him to this day that, despite his own, rather dysfunctional, childhood, he _still_ had the desire to have a child of his own. After all, with his history, there's no way he could possibly raise a child properly, could he? There were all these studies that had _proven_ that people with a bad family history were hardly fit to be parents…

And yet everyone who saw him with Regina told him he was a perfect parent to the little 5-year-old.

Regina _adores_ him, and she always toddles after him wherever he goes, holding onto his fingers or his pants leg, never straying too far from him. And Prompto adores her just the same, and if it was possible, he'd never let her go. He doesn't know why he's the parent that his own had never been, but maybe it has to do exactly with that; because he remembers what it is he should've had as a child…

But whatever it is, he doesn't let it bother him for long.

He has more important things to worry about more often than not.

* * *

"Don't like bugs, huh?" Prompto asks with a chuckle as he holds his little girl, who's currently pouting/frowning unhappily at said bugs crawling along the bushes.

" _Nu!_ "

Prompto laughs at the very vehement call and the puffy cheeks that follow the single word, showing her clear displeasure. He doesn't like bugs either, but at least he's got enough guts now to actually squash him if they're really bothering him… or shoot 'm to bits if he was dealing with something bigger than the average garden sized bug.

Regina, however, won't even come close to them, whether she has a weapon against them or not. She _especially_ hates spiders, but Iris says that's nothing strange; most girls and a lot of boys don't like any form of arachnid.

And secretly, Prompto's glad he's _never_ seen one bigger than those palm-sized ones; those were freaky enough as is.

"Oy, Prompto!" Gladio is calling out, making him look over. "C'mon; let's get going, shall we?"

"Right, right…"

He really doesn't like leaving Regina, but he _does_ need to get back to hunting regularly. Unfortunately, Ignis had other things to do, and Iris was helping Holly at the power plant, which left just himself and Gladio. Thankfully, Talcott's prepared to look after her, since he recently started working at Wiz's Chocobo Post. And better yet, Regina actually likes Talcott, so they don't have to worry too much about her making a fuss around him.

Prompto goes to Talcott and passes Regina to him, promising his little princess he'll be back soon and kissing her on her forehead before he does, because she's very picky about being passed on to someone else without being told first. He waves goodbye, telling her again that he'll be back soon.

Regina doesn't like to see him go, but she waves him goodbye anyway. And then Prompto smiles and hurries off; Gladio's getting annoyed, already, but oh well. He'd rather make sure his little girl isn't left feeling abandoned.

* * *

The sun is setting by the time Prompto and Gladio return to the outpost, and Prompto's happy to report that he doesn't have any scratches for once. He's managed to keep their target off of him for long enough for Gladio to strike 'm down, while he takes careful headshots at anything that even moves for him wrong.

So, yeah, he'd call it a successful hunt, indeed.

But he isn't prepared for what he hears when he comes back, when he sees Talcott and a number of the other workers running around in a panic, isn't prepared for the words told to him or the block of ice that feels like it's been dumped into his gut.

"Pr-Prompto…! I… w-we can't find Regina anywhere…!"

Prompto can barely think straight… can barely _see_ straight… panic is clouding his mind and it has his heart pounding in his throat and his blood pumping so fast that it buzzes in his ears as his breath accelerates until he's almost hyperventilating. He's never experienced such a high level of panic ever before; even his panic over losing Noct to the Crystal hadn't been _this_ great. He'd at least been able to steady his gun to shoot at Ardyn. Now, he wasn't sure if he'd be able to do even _that_.

Apparently, one moment, Regina was right next to him, and the next she was gone… and no one could find where she'd gone.

Gladio tells Prompto to go back to the hotel room, saying that they need someone in the room in case Regina comes back on her own and finds her way to their room and while he doesn't want to leave it to the others and he wants to join them in looking for his little girl, he knows that Gladio's right. If she comes back to the room all on her own, then there _has_ to be someone there for her… and so he goes to the room and sits on the bed, clasping his hands together to stop their insistent shaking and trying to collect his breathing.

He doesn't normally pray, has never been the type for it, never had the belief for it, but he finds himself doing just that now; praying for his little girl's safe return.

But the hours pass, the sun disappears, the night descends upon them, and the panic returns a thousand times worse, his whole body shaking and trembling as his eyes fill with tears at the thought of something horrible having happened. He's glancing at the clock every few seconds, and he eventually gets up and paces around, biting his nails and his thumb as he tries to calm himself down, telling himself over and over again that he can't leave the room because he needs to be there in case his little girl comes back and comes looking for him…

But he knows he can't sit still and just wait…

He releases a cry, yanks on his shoes, grabs his gun and his flashlight and pulls on his jacket, running outside into the darkness.

Prompto's outside in the darkness for barely a minute or the sky breaks open with the crack of thunder and within moments he's soaked to the bone, but he's beyond caring. He runs away from the outpost, trying to think logically about where Regina could possibly be. If he was her, where would he go?

She isn't at the post; Talcott would've found her by now if she was. She isn't at the racetrack; again, it's too close and Talcott would've found her. But what else is nearby?

Deadeye's nest is also a 'no'; it's the first place Gladio thought to check, and if she was there, surely he'd have been back already.

A sudden, though unlikely, thought hits him then, but he still swiftly bolts off into the direction of the place he's just thought of;

Fociaugh Hollow.

It strikes him then as well that the cave is littered with daemons like imps and goblins, which were most commonly known for snatching children away, and this makes his blood boil at the very idea that one of those beasts had _dared_ take his little girl away from him.

Prompto arrives in record time, and he's dimly aware in the back of his mind that he should tell Gladio where he is and, potentially, request backup before the cave blocks his phone's signal, but Prompto is far too panicked and angered and scared for Regina's fate that the thought is almost instantly dismissed as he begins his descent into the depths. He can't waste any more time…

* * *

The first time he came here had been particularly traumatizing; because really, _why_ did it have to a goddamn snake trying to kidnap and potentially eat _him_ of all people?! Why not Gladio? He had a lot more meat on his bones than Prompto did (and still does, to be fair…), but _noooo_ , it just _had_ to be the skinniest guy of the bunch, huh?

Thankfully that daemon's no longer a threat, so Prompto focuses instead on moving through the cave as fast as he dares and can without accidentally tripping over his own feet, his gun already in hand with his finger on the trigger, though he makes sure his hand's relaxed enough that he doesn't accidentally pull the trigger on things he shouldn't. It's dark, and he's glad he still had the common sense to grab his flashlight before leaving the hotel, allowing him to actually see where he's going or he'd have been lost five seconds in.

A sound comes from up ahead and he pauses, listening as he grips his gun in both hands now, seeking to steady himself at least somewhat before he dives in headfirst without looking. Leaping before looking is _still_ not a very well thought out strategy in any situation.

It's a chittering, almost like a high-pitched laugh, and one that can't possibly belong to a human, but it's a sound he remembers very well, and he doesn't think he's ever going to forget it; imps. His earlier assumption immediately rushing back to him in full, Prompto's hands clench tightly around his gun, finger itching against the trigger, as he feels his face contorting into a scowl, lips curling back into a snarl. He tries to hold back, but his anger has taken over, as has another emotion he can't even name, and he immediately rushes in, gun raised and the moment he catches one of them in the flash of his light he pulls the trigger back.

The bang makes them look up, of course, but the one he'd had his sights on can barely get a sound out before the bullet rips through its skull, killing it in a single well-aimed shot. The other imps try to lunge for him with squeals of fury, but Prompto ducks and dodges and weaves through them, firing shot after shot and wiping them out in record time. Had he not been in such a blind rush, he might've been amazed at his own prowess, especially with the amount of imps surrounding him. As it is, though, he barely gives them any attention as he rushes on after they all lay dead at his feet, dissipating into smoke as all daemons do.

" _Regina!_ " he shouts in between battles, pausing his frantic dash to listen, his breath labored and cold sweat rolling down his forehead, but he has no time to wipe it away. His voice is cracking, but he knows that he needs to shout, even if it's only to fill the deathly silence surrounding him when there aren't imps or goblins around to screech at him. " _Princess!_ If you're here, please! Answer me!"

It seems to take so much longer than it had years ago to get through to the very end, but by the time he gets there, he's breathing heavily and his vision is blurred with tears as he tries to calm himself down, but it's not working…

"Please…!" he hears himself choking out through a clogged throat. "Please, sweetie… _please_ be alright…!"

There's a sound then; one that sounds like the laughing from before, but this time it sounds more… angry? Yeah, that sounds about right… but why angry?

He starts for the sound – when his foot almost slips out from under him and he barely manages to suppress a yelp as he stumbles to try and stay upright. Once he's upright, he looks down and shines his light on the ground, trying to see if he accidentally stepped in a puddle he'd missed, but he can't find anything of the like… except a streak of red…

Frowning, Prompto follows the streak for a moment, and finds a trail… and in the middle of the trail there is a torn scrap of dark gray fabric…

His blood freezes for a brief moment, realization dawning on him with recognition following shortly after… but then it boils and a rage unlike any other begins to boil under his skin, and then he's moving before he's even aware of it. He slams a new cartridge in his gun, and as he dashes around the corner and spots the imps and goblins, crowding around a hole he remembers passing through long ago while exploring, only to find some massive locked door behind it, screeching as they try to fit through properly with their weapons…

But Prompto doesn't give them the chance.

His gun fires once, twice, thrice, and three imps are dead. Three more shots before they can even realize what is happening, and this time three goblins bite the dust. The remainder barely even has the chance to do anything as Prompto dispatches the last imps and the single lone goblin remaining, never once slowing down before he falls back and literally slides himself through the hole all the way to the other side.

And there she is…

" _REGINA!_ " Prompto screams, scrabbling across the floor toward the girl huddling up before the massive door, pushing his gun back into its holster as he drops down beside the girl.

She's gasping, wheezing, pale, and her small hands are firmly pressed against her stomach, dyed as red as the ground beneath her. Her small body's shaking, her lips and eyelids are trembling, and sweat is glistening over every inch of visible skin that isn't dyed red. Panic hits him hard then, and for a moment, Prompto wants to scream in a combination of horror and anger, but his own rational side is shoving both of those aside to focus solely on the present; his little girl needs help and she needs it _now!_

He almost rips his jacket off, followed by his shirt, which he then tears to pieces along the seams, swiftly tying knots in the fabric, and then he's scooting over and pushing the fabric against the girl's stomach and she whimpers and then wails from the pain, trying to curl up, as tears shine in her eyes. He shushes her, and gently moves her hands and then her so he can swiftly secure his torn shirt around her stomach, covering the wound with the makeshift bandage and tying it firmly to hopefully stop the bleeding.

"…D…Dad…dy…?"

"It's okay, sweetie…" he hushes her softly, taking her small hand and kissing the small, blood-stained knuckles, uncaring if it transfers to his own mouth. "Daddy's here now… everything's going to be okay… I promise… it's okay… it's okay… everything's okay…"

He chants the words like a mantra, to his little girl, but also to himself, breathing only slightly easier in knowing that he's found her and that's right here with him, but only slightly because he's not in the clear yet and he still has to get her out of there! He can't tell how bad the wound is, but he doesn't want to know now; he just knows that he has to get her back to safety and to have the wound treated.

"…it… it h-hurts… Da…ddy…"

"I know, sweetie, ssshh… it'll be fine… we're going home now…it'll be fine…"

After pulling his jacket on, but leaving it open for now, he gently picks her up, then pulls her against him firmly as he zips up his jacket around her, so that he can hold her close with one hand, and still potentially shoot things getting in his way if necessary. Only when he's sure that he's got her up against him does he begin to rush off.

He's never moved this fast before, has never run this far or long before, but he finds he can't stop, as he runs on and on, one arm wrapped around Regina's badly shaking form firmly as he takes sharp intakes of air to supply his lungs with oxygen. His legs are screaming at him for reprieve, but he doesn't give a crap and forces himself to keep moving regardless of his own exhaustion. Even when he exits the cave he never stops running and runs as fast as he can toward the lights of the outpost, as he breathlessly repeats over and over and over the words "It's okay… it's okay… it's okay…"

When he arrives, Gladio sees him coming first and he starts to berate him on leaving the hotel without telling anyone that he had done so, until he spots Regina and his annoyance makes way for shock and horror. She's really pale now, almost as white as a sheet, her shivering's slowed down to where you can barely see her moving, her breathing's slowed to the point where he can barely feel her breaths against his chest, and she's gone completely slack in his grip. She's slipping and they both know it…

Prompto tries to get words out, tries to say something— _anything_ —to explain what happened and how things turned out as they did, but his voice cracks and all he manages is a broken sob of; " _Please…_ "

He can barely walk, can barely breathe, can barely see; his legs are screaming at him for reprieve, his lungs are burning from lack of oxygen and his eyes are clouded with tears but he can't give in to his emotions just yet… not until Regina is safe… not until he knows she's going to be _fine_ …

She's taken from his grasp, to treat her, he knows, but he can't let her go; he needs to be _there_ _for her!_ He can't leave her… not when she needs him the most!

They eventually let him stay, let him hold her hand as they hook her up to oxygen and carefully attach her to an IV because she's lost so much blood and oh god she's so pale… Prompto is panicking and he knows he shouldn't be there because he'll just stress everyone out but he can't leave her… he _can't!_

He doesn't look to the wound, but he knows it has to be bad; he hears the doctors gasping in alarm and hears their hushed whispers about it being so horrible but he doesn't listen… he merely holds her hand in both of his own and holds it to his forehead as he sits there, breathing unsteadily as he prays to whatever deities are watching over them… prays for them to protect his little girl… to make sure she'll make it through this…

It's all he can do right now…

* * *

He can't sleep… the hours tick by, but he can't sleep… even though she's okay now… her wounds are stitched up, she's got color back to her skin, and she's breathing better… but he can't sleep… he just _can't_ … he needs to be there when she wakes up… needs to know she's okay… he has to…

"Prompto."

He blinks, his eyelids feel heavy, he looks up…

"…Ignis…?"

When did he get here?

"You need to rest; it won't do her any good if you exhaust yourself to the brink of collapse."

"…I can't…" he admits, turning back to his daughter. "…I can't… I can't leave her… she's—"

"I did not say you should 'leave' her," Ignis interrupts, and he walks around the bed, using his fingertips along the foot to help him determine where he can walk. He steps up to the other side of the bed, reaches out, and then he, gently, tugs Regina a little more to the edge of the large bed. It's much too big for her alone, but it's the only size in medical. "I merely advised you to get some rest."

Prompto blinks once, and his eyelids feel even heavier, he nods, and then, wearily, he gets onto the bed, moving as close to the small girl as he can, curling his arms around her small frame as he holds her close without disrupting any of the equipment.

"…thanks, Iggy…"

"Anytime, Prompto."

He shuts his eyes then, holding his daughter close to him still, and he falls into an uneasy sleep…

* * *

When he wakes again, finally, Prompto's first thought is that he might have just dreamt the whole thing up, and that everything was just fine, and _would be_ fine… but once his brain caught up again and his weary eyes regarded the still form of his daughter next to him, _still_ with an oxygen mask and _still_ with an IV attached to her arm, he bites back a cry of despair. He lays back down and gently rests a hand on her chest (avoiding the large bandages secured around her stomach meant to prevent infection, and he rests his forehead to her head, struggling to breathe properly.

He forces himself to take deep, steady breaths, continuously reassuring himself that things were okay and that they would be okay soon; she was healing, and it wouldn't be long until she was back on her feet again, bouncing around and laughing without a care in the world.

Prompto keeps telling himself this… it's the only thing that keeps him grounded now.

"Hey, Prompto."

Prompto winces at the voice, almost hesitant to respond, but he knows he has to, so he slowly sits up and turns to his friend. He's in for it now, he's sure of it… he _really_ should've called Gladio he was going out there to look for her; he _knows!_ …and yet rationale had had abandoned him and he'd run off without thinking twice.

"H-hey, Gladio…" he manages to get out, bracing himself already for the earful he's probably about to get…

But no such thing happens.

"How is she?" Gladio asks as he moves over and takes a chair at the bed's far end.

Of course Prompto's confused about the lack of… well, shouting, really, because Gladio was known to be very loud when he was angry or upset, and yet he's not saying anything about the stunt Prompto had pulled. It must show on his face, because Gladio chuckles softly, but it's a mirthless chuckle.

"Don't worry; I'll get to that once the little one's back on her feet. I know what that's like…"

'That' as in worrying and panicking about another's well-being, Prompto realizes, and he breathes a little easier, relaxing on the bed slightly.

"So… what happened?"

And Prompto explains, about him feeling helpless, about feeling like he needed to do something, about actually running off and heading for Fociaugh Hollow, about his run-in with the daemons, about how and where he found Regina, about the state she was in…

There are times where he can barely get the words out, but he forces himself to push on, to explain and to hopefully alleviate some of his own panic and worry so that, he hopes, he can sleep a little better. He's glad for Gladio being there; he can relate and he reassures Prompto that, even if it was irresponsible, he did the right thing. Because if he hadn't gone when he had, they might've actually lost her…

It's a chilling thought… but it eases his mind and heart at the same time…

Because he _did_ run off… he _did_ enter Fociaugh Hollow… he _did_ hunt down the daemons that took his little girl…

But most importantly; he _did_ save his daughter…

* * *

A few days pass, with Regina gradually regaining her strength again, but Prompto still can't bear to leave her, so he stays by her side almost continuously, leaving only when he needs to use the bathroom, and even then he makes sure to be back as soon as possible. He doesn't want her to wake up and to be all alone, or around people she doesn't know, and so he stays by her side…

* * *

"…dy… Daddy?"

Prompto groans as something prods at his cheek insistently, not wanting to wake up… his eyes feel heavy and he can barely muster up enough energy to even _think_ … but when there's another prod, followed by another call, his eyes blink open slowly and he feels more than hears himself humming…

And then his eyes meet a pair of tired blue orbs.

"…! Regina!" he gasps out and immediately reaches out to hold her (carefully! She still has medical equipment secure to her…). And then he hisses as his muscles protest against the sudden swift motion that they've become unused to because of how long he's been lying in bed. "Argh…!"

"…Da-Daddy…!" the small girl calls out, trying to reach for him, but wincing as she tried to move the arm with the IV in it.

"I'm okay, sweetie!" Prompto quickly assures her, placing her arm back on the bed, holding her hand and gently rubbing his thumb over it. "I'm okay, everything's fine," he promises with a warm smile, trying _so_ very hard not to cry. "How are you?"

"…owie," the small girl admits, and Prompto chokes out a small laugh.

"Oh no… where, sweetie?"

"My tummy…" Regina says, putting her hand over the bandages covering her stomach.

"Aaaww, my poor baby," Prompto says softly, before he moves in and gently kisses the area she indicated. "It'll be okay, sweetie," he promises, gently moving her long bangs out of her eyes. "Everything will be okay…"

"…promise?"

"I promise, princess."

And as she smiles and moves closer (as best as she can) to cuddle, Prompto has no desire to deny her as he wraps his arms firmly around her. And when she shuts her eyes with a small smile, Prompto finally smiles again for the first time in days and he breathes easier as a weight lifts from his shoulders.

It'll be okay… everything's going to be fine…

He's never had a parental figure in his life who would get protective over him, doesn't have a reference from which he's learned it's important for a parent to protect their child… but it seems some things just come… naturally.

And he wouldn't have it any other way…


	11. Assemble

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 784

 **Summary:** Regina has never really considered what she wanted of her life; has never been sure what it was she wanted to do when she became of age. But she knows what she's going to keep doing until she does know.

* * *

 _ **Assemble**_

If there's one thing that Regina's never really thought much about, it's her own future. Usually, by the time you're a teen you start planning for what you want to do once you're considered to be an adult. But Regina's never really thought on it for long. She's always just gone along with everything; never really sticking to anything and attempting to be as knowledgeable as she could get without her head cracking from the pressure.

She's learned to wield a sword (coz her Dad wanted her to be able to protect herself, just in case), and after a bit of practice, she was fairly decent at it. But she also figured out soon that she wasn't too bad with guns and polearms, either, and then she tried her hand at daggers, and hey, that worked out fine. Great swords were a bit _too_ clunky for her taste, but sure, if there was nothing else available, she'd take one. Plus she was pretty quick on her feet, which helped with dodging any claws and teeth coming at her.

With a bit of difficulty (and a lot of help from Libri) she's also managed to get most of Eros' history down pat. The Empire's still a bit of a sore subject, but she knows most of Lucis' and Accordo's history. They're currently trying to get a grasp on Tenebrae's history, but with the region having been under Imperial control for so long, much of its original history was almost entirely wiped clean. Which is a pity, because the little she _did_ learn was very interesting.

Now Regina's no fool; she knows that, one day, she'll be an adult, and she'll have to figure out what it is she wants to do with her life. However, despite all the options available to her, she has no idea what she wants to do. Fishing's an option that her Dad's often proposed, and while the idea is nice, she's not so sure if that's what she wants to do exclusively with her life. She's sure that, eventually, she'll want to do something else, and so the idea is pushed to the back of her mind.

She still has a good year to figure out what it is she wants with her life, so she might's well do what she likes and go through her life with a smile.

* * *

"Right! Time to make tracks!" Regina calls out with a laugh as her Black Chocobo takes off dashing down the dirt road before strafing hard left. "Chop-chop, Domi!" she shouts after when she spots who's running behind.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Dominatio calls back, his own Mauve Chocobo hurrying to catch up.

"I shall go on ahead!" Libri states as she passes Regina on her Red Chocobo.

Ternio is laughing from the back of her Blue Chocobo as she follows right after. "Damn, the weather's nice today! Love it!"

It's been a long while since they've all been on the road together, without any adults watching over them from a distance. And sure, Terry was technically already an adult at 21, a good 4 years Regina's senior, but she was still behaving like the wild, brash teen she'd been ever since Regina'd first met her at the age of 6.

And being out in the open with friends like this is _very_ refreshing as their Chocobos run through the woods of Duscae's eastern region, the wind blowing through their hair and generally messing up whatever prim-and-proper look that Iris had tried to get them to agree to upon leaving Lestallum for Wiz's Chocobo Post, from where they had saddled their respective Chocobos and simply rode off.

As they continue onward, though, Regina almost feels bad for telling her Dad only the half-truth of what they were planning to do. She'd told him they'd be going around Duscae on a 'girls only' camping trip. Of course, he'd given Domi a small glance, but he'd accepted that the fair-haired teen was coming along in the end.

And sure, the camping _is_ part of their plan… but only a part of it.

"It should be in this area!" Libby is calling out suddenly after they've been on the road for, maybe 20 minutes?

"Cool! That took barely any time at all!" she says with a small smirk, and she feels her body thrumming in excitement. When Regina looks at her friends, she can tell they're equally excited (even Libby, even though she won't show it). After all, your first hunt only comes once, right? "You girls ready?!"

"Hah! I was _born_ ready!" Terry laughs out.

"As ready as I'll ever be," Domi calls with a firm nod.

Libby merely hums as she adjusts her glasses. "Let's not waste more time, shall we?"

They follow the road for a little longer, and then finally have their Chocobos stop so that they can move in on their target with a little more stealth. They carefully maneuver through the trees and bushes, making sure to keep the noise to a minimum and to make it sound like it's a natural sound.

They're all dressed well for the occasion; light and easy clothes, but tight enough to allow for the fabric to not catch onto anything.

Regina's wearing long pants that hug her legs firmly, her boots clasped shut around the pants legs, while her dark gray shirt is tucked into her pants, her Dad's old jacket slung around her shoulders and wearing her traditional fingerless gloves on her right hand. Of course her bangs are still hanging in her eyes, but she doesn't care; she can see fine, and the back of her hair is lightly styled up and back, with the rest of it hanging down in her neck and along her shoulders.

Ternio's wearing some easy jeans that allow for just the right amount of movement she needs, and her tank top ends just above her bellybutton, with her sleeveless jacket reaching just past her ribs and hugging her chest a little _too_ much (in some people's opinions), with her sneakers barely making a sound along the grass. Her short hair still hangs in red curls around her ears, just barely long enough to not be a bother just yet.

Libri's wearing knee-length shorts and a long-sleeved shirt (seriously? Why?), as well as her usual red scarf/cape, even though everyone was saying it could snag onto something. She also carries a supply bag along her waist, which was actually resting on her rear end, but this never did seem to bother her one bit. Her light brown hair was secured in a simply, but loose bun at the back of her neck, only a few stray, stubborn strands slipping loose to land on her face.

Dominatio seems to be the only odd one out, and not just because he's the only boy in the group (even if you can't tell from afar), but because he's wearing a short, dark purple skirt that's attached to some loose shorts that allow him some easy maneuverability, his tank top just barely passing his ribs, with his dark purple denim jacket (which is just as long) zipped up only one fourth of the way to barely reach the middle of his chest, while his heeled boots easily reach up to his knees and seem to perfectly hug his curved legs. His hair's secured in its usual braided style, with one single braid resting on his shoulder at all times, and a purple Moogle-shaped hairpiece rests along his left temple.

Nothing about their attire gives away what it is they truly came out there to do, and that's perfectly fine. That's exactly what they want, after all.

And finally, they reach the area and they all crouch down as they take in the beasts strutting about like they own the place. Regina snorts as he watches the Spiracorns walking about, even as she reaches to the side and tugs her sword from its sheath along her back. She snaps it up and unfolds the blade with a quiet click, curling her hand around its handle properly so she doesn't accidentally hit the trigger. She's not even sure whose idea it was to come up with the idea of a "gunblade", but she's come to like the idea enough to warrant a purchase of said blade.

"Blazefire Saber" was what the shopkeeper had called it, she believed…

Ternio pulls out her spear from where it'd been secured across her back, lightly spinning it between her fingers as she rolls her shoulders. Libri is adjusting her glasses as she considers the entire situation (twice, Regina's sure), before she finally pulls out her daggers, adjusting her grip until they rest securely and comfortably in her hands. And Dominatio already has his hands on the two guns resting in their holsters along his hips, fingers placed along the barrel just above the trigger, needing to only slide down a little to land on said trigger.

"Ready?" Regina asks softly, her voice a mere breath of wind.

Her friends don't answer verbally, but they all nod wordlessly.

"On three… one… two…"

The second until the last word seems to last almost three times as long as Regina's fingers tighten on her weapon and she breathes in a breath of fresh air.

" _THREE!_ "

Domi instantly pulls out both guns, slips his fingers onto the triggers as he stands and then he shoots while the others dash in from all sides. The shots hit one of the Spiracorns to the temple and the neck, and while it definitely hurts it, it isn't even to take down such a large beast. It whinnies and turns on Domi, but when it does, Terry has already kicked off of the ground and is coming down on its back, spear first. Sadly, she's just short of her mark, and while the blade rips through the skin, it doesn't do nearly as much damage as she would've liked.

She has to jump back and avoid a nasty kick from the beast's hind legs, while also swiveling out of the way of the one rushing her from the side. Thankfully Libby is there to shift the focus of one of them to her, while Domi finally comes close and starts to fire shot after shot, with every shot hitting its intended target. And every time they tried to go for him, Libby and Regi were there to pull their attention away from the gunner.

Regi, meanwhile, is dodging and weaving while snapping her blade out at the daemons when they miss her by a hair. As one of them lunges for her, she jumps back in a backflip, snaps her blade in half with a flick of the wrist and pulls the trigger, firing a shot at the beast's leg. It's now cripple and it snorts as it tries to move without stumbling, but she darts forward quickly.

Unfortunately, it still has enough power to get up and turn and snap its legs out, and she can't dodge and she chokes on her breath as she's flung backwards from the kick to her stomach, rolling with a half-cry because she's trying to catch her breath again after that. Regi's quick to leap to her feet again, though, and this time, as she runs, she catches a familiar presence from beside her and she smirks.

With practiced ease she reaches for the side as she tosses her blade over, catching Domi's gun as he catches her sword. Domi twirls on his feet with the ease and grace of a ballerina, bending his back a full ninety degrees as he arches the blade around and drags it along the daemon's neck, and as it turns to him, it gets an eyeful of a bullet that Regi releases at point blank and it releases a scream-like noise as it staggers back and onto its back. Regi grabs Domi in mid-twirl and easily spins him to a stop before they step back and throw their weapons back their respective owners.

"Nice one, Dom!" Regi laughs as she easily dodges to the side of another Spiracorn.

"Not too bad yourself either, love," Domi says with a giggle as he twirls his gun around his finger before he casually but sensually blows the smoke from the barrel – right before he aims his gun behind him and blindly shoots at the Spiracorn that had been barreling at him, after which he easily spins out of the way with a cheery giggle.

Regi laughs at the fair-haired boy's obvious amusement, shaking her head briefly before she jumps right back into the fray. She barely dodges one of the beasts as it snaps its head out at her, almost spearing her on its spiral horn.

"Beg pardon, Regi," a calm voice quips from behind as there's a brief touch at the back of her neck, and she responds instinctively as she ducks down while reaching back and pulling Libby over her back into a full spin along her back. The bespectacled girl's feet slam into the daemon's skull and knock it off its original course enough that Libby can bury one blade into its neck, while Regi spirals over her back in turn and then drags the blade firmly and deeply across its stomach, causing blood and entrails to start dripping out.

"Perfect execution," Libby says as she briefly adjusts her glasses after she's pulled her dagger back out.

"Flawless," Regi laughs as they spin away from each other to avoid one of the other Spiracorns. However, it suddenly changes course halfway past her and dashes for her. "Oh _crap!_ "

"Going _DOWN!_ " Terry's voice suddenly says as she appears from the side and swings out her polearm at the beast's front legs at just the right timing that it stumbles and spins head over heels, giving Regi enough time to dodge it properly. As she spins, though, she snaps out her blade a tears a deep, bloody gash along the beast's side.

Terry laughs as the Spiracorn collapses with an agonized whinny. "Think he's got two left feet?"

"Two left hooves more like!" Regi corrects with a laugh of her own, as they rush right back into the fray.

* * *

"Yahoo~" Domi cheers as the last Spiracorn drops to the ground, its head almost completely severed from its neck, bullet holes riddled over its neck and side. "We did it!"

"Hell yeah we did!" Regi laughs as she surveys the landscape around them. Where there had once been a herd of Spiracorns making the area unsafe and acting like they owned the place, there were now only the dead corpses of said Spiracorns, bleeding out from the multitude of wounds inflicted by the small group. "And it's hardly noon yet. Hah!"

Terry gives a laugh of her own as she secures her spear along her back again. "Was there ever any doubt we couldn't do it?" she quips with a cheeky grin as she begins to stretch her body out properly. "Not bad for our first hunt, eh?"

"Regina," Libby says suddenly, pushing up her glasses a little. "One of them kicked you, did it not? Are you feeling unwell?"

Regina blinks curiously before she snorts. "No, course not," she chuckles. "It's just a kick; it's not like they actually managed to tear through skin."

"Regardless, the kick might've left some damage in its wake. I say we find a haven so we can ascertain you are, indeed, fine."

"Oh come on, Libby," Regina whined. "I feel _fine_. The most it'll do is that it'll leave a bruise, meaning I have to keep wearing long shirts for a while. Big deal."

Domi cocks his head curiously, making his one stray braid tumble a little along his shoulder. "Are you sure?" he asks, sounding a little worried. "What if… maybe… the kick ruptured your stomach or your kidneys or—"

"Domi, _c'mon_ ," Regina laughs softly. "Quit being such a doom-thinker. I'm fine!"

Libri scoffs a little at the words. "Well, then you'll have no problem if I examine the point of contact, hm?"

Regi sighs and rolls her eyes, but she doesn't object to the idea and instead reaches for her shirt, tugs it out from her pants and then lifts it up to show off her well-toned stomach, which is steadily starting to darken from the bruise she had already predicted earlier. "There. See?"

Libby steps up to her and begins to prod and move her fingers along her bare stomach, and Regina is fighting the urge to flinch away because even if it doesn't hurt much, the skin is bruising and that still causes some mild discomfort. But she _does_ jump back when Libby's fingers trace the scar running along her abdomen just above her hips.

"Not the scar, Libby!"

"Ah… apologies," Libri apologizes sincerely.

The exchange makes Terry laugh, but Domi looks a little worried. "Are you sure you're okay? It didn't… tear it, did it?"

"That's not how scars work, you silly nilly!" Regina laughs as she tucks her shirt back in her pants. "Anyway… we've cleared the hunt. So let's go fetch our reward, shall we?"

The others laugh, each in their own way—Libby chuckles politely behind her finger, Terry laughs loudly and openly, and Domi giggles from behind his well-manicured hand—before they follow after her to get back to their Chocobos. Once they reach the large birds, they spend a moment to pet their steeds, before climbing on their backs and starting off for the Coernix Station of Alstor, from which they had originally accepted the hunt a few days prior to the planned trip.

And as they go, they're all laughing and racing each other along the road, along the untrodden earth, jumping along the fences and just having the time of their life.

Regina's sure her Dad would have a thing or two to say to her if he _ever_ finds out she went out on a hunt without informing him that she'd even been considering it, but for the moment, all she focuses on it the moment; laughing and screaming for joy with her three best friends in the whole world.

Even if she ends up being grounded for life, her Dad will never be able to take this moment away from her; the moment she and her friends assembled their little group as a true unity.


	12. Quartet

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 783

 **Summary:** Iris has been warning Prompto about the day when Regina brings her friends over to have a sleepover, because, as girls, it would either be complete chaos or a mess of giggling, gossiping misfits. But leave it to 16-year-old Regina to prove Iris wrong once again…

* * *

 _ **Quartet**_

Prompto's always known that raising a girl as a single father was not an easy feat, especially when it comes to things that he, as a man, has no knowledge about. Even with the help of Iris, Cindy and Aranea, it's not an easy feat to explain to a girl how she's going to be so different from her only parent once she reaches her teen years. Dear Six… that was actually _really_ embarrassing…

Still, he's very proud that he's managed to make it to her 16th birthday with as little (real) difficulty as he has.

Which, coincidentally puts him in the current situation; said girl's 16th birthday. While she certainly hasn't asked for much, she _did_ want to have her friends come over to celebrate with her. Thankfully, the house is big enough for that, but it does leave Prompto a little worried about things. Of course, Gladio and Ignis will be there as well, and Iris has insisted on coming to be a mediator for the girls in the event that something goes wrong, though Prompto is _really_ hoping it's not necessary.

Regina is busy setting up the table with Iris (by Ignis' request), while Ignis is already busy in the kitchen, while himself and Gladio are moving some old furniture to the side of the room to give them some more room. They do make sure to inform Ignis where they put everything, of course. It's only 10 in the morning, and Regina wasn't happy about being woken at 6 (again!), but after her morning jog with Prompto, she's been up and working alongside everyone eagerly despite her earlier grumpiness.

It isn't until they're busy working that Regina seems to remember that this will be the first time her friends actually meet each other properly, since, up until then, Regina's only met with one of them at a time, either in Lestallum, the library or just outside of Lestallum. She actually seems a bit nervous about introducing the trio to each other, but she does her best not to show it, even if Prompto can tell from how she keeps biting the nail of her thumb, making him chuckle softly.

It's 11:30, half an hour before they're supposed to be there, when there's a knock on the door. Regina immediately goes for the door, saying that that has to be Domi because he likes to be early. And sure enough, when the door opens, there's Dominatio, smiling and waving with a smile on his face before Regina pulls him into a hug that's happily returned and he's finally shown inside. Prompto still can't really get over the fact that one of Regina's best "girl friends" is actually just a guy wearing a dress. That had been _really_ awkward when Regina actually had to point out to them all after Domi had left that first time that "she was a _he_ ".

It had been pretty hilarious to see Gladio spluttering for words, though.

Still…

"Good morning, Mr. Argentum!" Domi greets him with a cheery wave and a kind smile, and even now, when he's this close, he just can't see Domi as anything other than a girl. For fuck's sake, the guy's even wearing makeup and has like the frilliest ( _pink!_ ) dress he's ever seen anywhere! Plus, he walks on heels!

"Morning, Domi," he says with a polite smile of his own, "but really; just call me Prompto. It's fine, already."

"Ah, but…"

"It's fine, Domi," Regina quips as she throws an arm across the pale-haired boy's shoulders. They're the same height, but Domi is currently a little taller because of his heels, so their shoulders are touching. "You don't have to be so formal all the time, silly."

"Well… okay, then… if you're sure," Domi says with a small giggle, even as he's being guided to the living room (after taking off his shoes at the doorway). He greets Ignis and Gladio on the way, the latter of which is actually taking a step back before replying a little gruffly at him, which seems to confuse Domi, but Regina shrugs it off and tells him not to worry about it with a conspiratorial smirk.

Iris is already in the living room, and this is her first time actually meeting Domi, and she seems to automatically assume him to be a girl, given how she's acting around him. She does seem very interested in Domi's dress, and he merely giggles and answers Iris' questions as best as he can, even twirling around once to show her the entire dress back to front.

And, of course, Iris is telling Regina that she should consider such a dress, but Regina immediately says "No!" before she can even finish the suggestion. Iris is pouting, but Domi is giggling and saying it's fine; that "Regi looks far too handsome to be wasted on a dress!" before he hugs Regina and abruptly kisses her cheek and Iris splutters while Prompto is struggling not to laugh.

It's pretty funny to see those two going at it; Regina is so tomboyish in both her dresscode and behavior, that she's even had love confessions from various girls around Lestallum (much to her dismay), and Domi is so feminine he gets a lot of attention from the guys (which he's always quick to refute from what Regina says). The two of them together like this actually makes a little bit of sense; a tomboyish girl and a girly boy? Yeah, sure, why not?

They spend the next half hour just chatting and looking at Domi's sketchpad for a little, before he gets the request to sketch Iris. Which he does in about 10 minutes to get it _just_ right, and Iris is definitely impressed with his skill.

And at 12:00 sharp, there's another knock on the door. And Regina laughs as she gets up and heads for the door, mumbling something about 'being punctual as always', which leads Prompto to believe it's Libri on the other side. And sure enough, there's Libby, prim and proper as she always is, with (of course) a book under her arm, though she's also carrying a small bag with her, which is probably where she's got her present for Regina.

"Good day," she greets as she enters the room, and everyone returns the greeting calmly and politely.

And then it's time for her to meet Domi, and the boy stnads up with a smile, smoothing out his skirt before he turns to Libby to greet her.

"Hello~" he chirps with a bright smile. "I'm Dominatio, but you can call me Domi if you want… Libby, was it?"

Libby is blinking rapidly at Domi's appearance, and Prompto wonders absently if Regina actually informed the brunette that Domi was male and if that's why she's not responding immediately. After a few moments, though, Libby clears her throat and once more adjusts her spectacles, something she does whenever she's nervous. "Ah, yes, that is correct." She pauses then and quickly looks over Domi's attire, her eyebrow twitching. "Um… nice dress."

"Thank you~" Domi says with a giggle, either not noticing the stammer, or simply not caring about it enough. "I wasn't sure if it'd look good at first… but I think it worked out fine. Right?"

"More than fine," Regina laughs with a warm smile, clearly amused by Libby's attempts to not go gaga over Domi. Because they all know that Libby's a sucker for adorable things, big or small.

If Domi notices this, then he doesn't show it; he just takes his seat again as Regina drops herself back on the couch, her arms across the back of it so that, if she slips it off, it will more than likely land on Domi's shoulder. Libby wisely take one of the armchairs, though this doesn't stop her from casting the occasional glance at Domi as they talk.

And then, at 12:15, another knock comes from the door, this one heavier than Libby's or Domi's. Regina smiles as she gets up and heads for the door. And as expected, when the door opens, Ternio is standing in the doorway, chugging water from a canteen, and sweating like a pig. She gives a grin and a wave to accompany her boisterous greeting, before she asks if she can borrow the washroom to change out of her sweat-soaked jeans and shirt.

"Maybe you should take a shower while you're at it," Regina points out, and she laughs as she ducks under the swipe aimed for her head, even though Terry is laughing as hard as she is. And in the end, she _does_ take Regina up on her offer and takes a quick shower to cool off from her jog over.

By 12:30, the four of them are lounging in the living room with their respective drinks, after Terry introduced herself to the other two. Domi seems to be particularly interested in Terry's prosthetic leg, asking this and that about it, which Terry has no problems answering. Libby has her own questions for Terry, but she asks them with such a serious expression, that Terry can't help but poke a little fun at the other girl.

Prompto decides they need to intervene then before a fight breaks out, so he and the others finally join them to chat. Regina doesn't mind; in fact, she wanted them to be there, because they'd always been until then, so why not now?

After almost two hours of just chatting and joking, it's finally time to present the birthday girl with her presents. Iris gives her some new clothes (no dresses or skirts, thankfully…), while Gladio gives her a training sword (much as Prompto wishes he hadn't really…), and Ignis hands her some new songs for her music player. They're all things she's very happy with, and they're all glad, but Prompto feels like they're not as important as they had once been. Because as much as he hates to admit it, his little girl is growing up, and he's well aware that there'll be a day where he has to let her go… but he's never imagined it would be coming so soon…

Then again, time flies when you're having fun, huh?

Libri gives her present then, and Regina doesn't look surprised when she unwraps it to reveal a history book. In fact, she's laughing and saying she's not the least bit surprised, but she looks happy and gives her friend a quick hug around the shoulders along with her thanks, and Libri merely adjusts her glasses and says she's welcome.

Ternio passes her present by tossing it over, and Regina catches it easily with a small half-laugh. When she opens it, she pulls out a watch of some kind, and after a bit of fiddling with its features, she laughs and says something about it being one of those watches you use to time yourself running, before she secures it around her left wrist. Ternio doesn't get a hug; she gets a high-five, which isn't anything new.

Then it's Dominatio's turn, and he hands Regina a small present, even smaller than Terry's. Regina doesn't seem to care about its size, but Prompto can tell from how Domi is wringing his fingers in the fabric of his skirt that it definitely bothers _him_ as she tries to get the tape to come off so she can open it properly. It takes a minute or two, but finally, the wrapping falls away and Regina lifts up a thin silver chain, with a gorgeous silver charm hanging from it. It looks like a small spiral circling around an orb of pure deep amethyst. It's a simple enough trinket, but it's definitely pretty, and he can tell Regina likes it from the twinkle in her eyes as she regards it. She smiles and she thanks Domi sincerely before she abruptly pulls him in for a full hug. Not a half-one like with Libby, but a full on hug.

Domi yelps in surprise, startled, before he returns the hug, for as long as it lasts. Regina immediately unclips the clasp and then reaches around her neck to secure the necklace around her neck. This seems to help Domi's anxiety as well, and Prompto allows a small smile. He recognizes the symptoms that Domi is displaying; has seen them too often in the mirror all those years ago to know exactly what is going on with the boy.

And he was fine with that, really. Iris has once said that when Regina would get old enough to date, Prompto would be fighting off men trying to woo her because he'd think they weren't good enough for his little girl… but he believes Domi isn't a bad guy, and if he can make Regina happy, who's he to complain and try to break it up?

Gladio's asking suddenly if it's time to eat yet, since he's getting hungry and it makes Iris slap him on the shoulder playfully while the others laugh. Once Ignis has toned down his chuckles, however, he says simply: "We'll start once _everyone_ has given their presents, Gladio."

While Gladio looks at Iggy funny, Domi gives a small sound of realization. "He's right; Mister—I mean… Prompto hasn't given his present yet!"

In any other situation, he'd be happy that Domi had managed to correct himself and actually called him by name (finally), but as things stand now, he's a little more annoyed than anything. Now it isn't that he'd purposefully kept his present for last; it's just that his old anxieties have been coming back to bite him in the ass, making him far more nervous than he likely needs to be. And sure, he knows Regina will accept the present no matter what it is, but there's just something about all of this that worries him greatly.

Still, he merely smiles as he pulls out the present he had set aside for her, and he passes it to her as calmly as he can manage. She looks excited either way and Regina takes extra care when unwrapping her last present. Everyone else seems just as curious about the item, which only makes him feel more and more anxious about what Regina may think of it…

Turns out he had nothing to worry about. When she's removed all the wrapping and figures out exactly what it is she's looking at, she's smiling brightly and she immediately gets up, walks up to him and hugs him in thanks, and he laughs and returns the embrace, trying to ignore how his heart is still trying to calm itself down.

Her friends are asking what she got when she finally walks back while opening the box. She doesn't answer, but she doesn't have to as she pulls out the camera from the box and flips it on, starting to play with the functions for a moment or two. Then she suddenly takes a picture of Domi, who'd been very vocally curious about the camera the whole time, and he gives a sound that's almost like a squeal that has everyone laughing at the sound and it makes him pout slightly before Regina pats him on the shoulder with a small apology (ruined by how she's still smiling and half-chuckling).

Once she's sure she has everything figured out and Prompto has moved over to give her some tips about the lighting and whatnot, she declares she wants her first 'professional' shot to be one of everyone together. Of course, no one objects, but it does take a bit of rearranging.

It's worth it, however, and once the photo's been taken, Ignis finally agrees that it's time for lunch.

* * *

The 'party' continues until late into the night… and it's nothing like what Prompto or Iris could have predicted.

Regina and her friends spent most of the day playing video games and once they got bored of _that_ they moved on to card games as they talked about everything they've been doing recently while the others weren't around. For example, Terry'd attempted to run from Lestallum to Old Lestallum, but had to call it off when she failed to reach it before nightfall, and Libby had tried to locate some old books from Tenebrae, only for them to end up being fakes and not holding anything regarding the subject she'd been looking for. Domi, in the meanwhile, said he'd been trying to find a good angle to draw the Disc of Cauthess, but he hadn't been successful yet, and Regina said she'd been helping raise a Black Chocochick back at the Chocobo Post, which had Prompto chuckling softly at the reminder.

But now the night has fallen and the group of girls (well… 3 girls and 1 boy, really…) is preparing to go to bed. The sleepover was a definite given, and Prompto's made the necessary preparations already, so all they have to do is get changed. Gladio, Iris and Ignis have already left, despite Iris saying it'd be better if she staid, in case of. However, given what he's seen of the small group thus far, Prompto's fairly sure he doesn't need the help.

"Dad?"

Prompto hums as he looks up from where he's putting away the dishes. Regina's already in her sleepwear; thigh-length shorts and one of his old shirts. "What's wrong, Regina?"

"Nothing's wrong. Just… do we have a tray somewhere? Otherwise I'll have to make two trips with the drinks…"

He laughs softy. "Don't think so… but if you help me put all of these away, I'll help you with the drinks. Sounds good?"

"Great! Thanks!" she says as she walks over and starts putting away the cutlery in the drawers.

As they work, though, Prompto's attention is then drawn to Regina's right hand… the one that's still covered by a fingerless leather glove clipped shut around her wrist.

"You haven't shown them yet?"

Regina looks up curiously, about to ask what he means given from her expression, but then she notices where his eyes are drawn. "…No," she admits then.

That doesn't surprise him; it isn't something one goes around showing off to everyone they meet, of course. But at the same time, he doesn't want her to keep walking around with the same kind of secret he's had to for so long. Which makes him say what he says next.

"Do you trust them?"

"Huh? Why are you asking me that?"

"Because it's important. More so than you think." He smiles at her as he says: "If you trust them, then you have to have faith that they won't judge you because of some silly lines." She seems unsure, so he puts the plates down and walks up to her, hugging her around her shoulders. "Don't worry, princess. I know what it's like; to be afraid of what people think of you to the point where you just clamp up. But believe me, once you get it off your chest, you'll feel _so_ much better. Okay?"

"…Yeah, okay… thanks, Dad."

He smiles as she turns and hugs him properly, returning it gently as he murmurs: "Anytime, sweetie."

They finish quickly, and then go up with the four drinks; mineral water for Terry, ice tea for Libby, strawberry lemonade for Domi and orange soda for Regina herself. Prompto smiles at each of his daughter's friends in turn as they thank him for the hospitality, before they all bid each other goodnight.

Unlike Iris' earliest predictions, the girls are not up until way past their usual bedtime, and, in fact, by the time Prompto goes up to check on them, they're all sleeping peacefully, and while he knows it's an invasion of their privacy, he can't help himself and he takes the shot in the dim lighting from the hall. Regina is half in and half out of her sleeping bag, her right hand half hidden under her pillow and her left hand tucked under her shirt, making it rise up a bit. Dominatio is in the one by her feet, but he appears to have rolled over a few times until he's almost in her lap, curled up into half a fetal position. Libri is flat on her back next to the bed, her glasses on the nightstand and one hand on her stomach, with the other under her pillow. Ternio is flat on her stomach with her arms under her pillow, and she's making some sort of humming sound from her throat, like a makeshift snoring, only less annoying or disturbing.

Prompto smiles as he quietly closes the door, before he walks to his own room, breathing out softly.

He knew it was coming… _had_ known it was coming for a long time… but good god had it come fast…

Sometimes it feels like only yesterday when he found an abandoned infant at the edge of the Crown City, alone and afraid, and small enough that he could hold her in two hands. And now… he almost laughs out loud. Regina is almost as tall as he is now. There's a high chance she won't get much taller, but yeah, there's no way he can even begin to think of holding her the way he once had.

And, in the back of his mind, that's a little depressing to Prompto…

He knows nothing lasts forever, of course, but it still hurts to know his little girl is growing up… and growing away from him.

Prompto takes a breath as he lays himself down on the bed and then brings up his camera to check the picture he just took. He finds himself smiling, despite the heaviness of his chest.

Because sure, the fact that his daughter is growing up hurts… but he can handle it, knowing she's got such good friends on her side.


	13. Vestigum

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 783

 **Summary:** Regina's always worn a glove to cover her right hand, ever since she was three years old. When her friends ask about why she refuses to take it off, she's not sure how to respond. How is she supposed to explain when she doesn't understand it herself?

* * *

 _ **Vestigum**_

As fun as it is to be running around and just run around and do stuff, sometimes Regina just wants to stay at home and relax without having to think about the future, or how she's becoming more and more like an actual woman. Of course that was a given, but she hates the fact that Iris has to _keep_ rubbing it in her face every time she comes over.

It's really getting on her nerves…

And that's why, when her Dad says he's got a hunt coming up at Wiz's Chocobo Post in the morning, she asks the following;

"Hey, Dad? I was wondering… can I stay home this time?"

Of course, he looks at her funny, clearly not sure if he's heard her right, but when she keeps looking at him seriously, he finally responds. "Well… I guess that's no problem. But may I ask why? You're usually okay with at least coming along to the area… especially when we're going to the Chocobo Post."

"I know, but… I dunno, I just… don't feel like it. Is that a bad thing?"

"Oh no! No, not at all… I'm just… well, surprised. Guess I just hadn't thought there'd come a day you _wouldn't_ want to come along."

She laughs, because she understands the feeling. "I know… me neither."

Her Dad chuckles softly, before he turns serious. "Are you sure you'll be okay on your own?"

"Well that's another thing… I was hoping I could… yanno… ask the others to come over, maybe?"

Her Dad laughs at the hesitancy of her question, before he smiles at her. "Of course you can. As long as you promise to keep the house standing when I get back."

"Daaaad! I'm not a kid, alright?" the sixteen-year-old mock-whined with a smile of her own.

And that's how things started up…

* * *

The following morning, she still ends waking up at 6 in the morning ( _goddammit!_ ) because Gladio hadn't heard that Regina was staying home this time. Oh well; she's up now, so she may as well get herself ready for when her friends showed up.

Domi gets there first, when her Dad's still there, which isn't so strange; Domi always likes to be early rather than late. She hugs him when he shows up, her usual greeting for her friend, which he returns happily, before they go to see her Dad and Gladio off. Her Dad gives her some last minute questions to make sure she'll be fine, and she knows many would find this to be annoying, but Regina appreciates the concern and she nods that she's got all she's going to need.

Once the two men have left, Libby arrives a few minutes after, carrying a new book ( _duh!_ ) with her. It doesn't take much longer for Terry to join them, and the group makes themselves comfy around the living room.

Much of the day is spent just playing video games and talking, and that's perfectly fine. Libby's dug up a few new facts about Tenebrae as well, and that's always interesting to hear about, too, and Regina can tell Terry and Domi are equally curious about it.

Come lunch time, Libby makes them a lunch that's on par with Iggy's (not that she'll tell Ignis that… he might take it as a challenge…), and they all sit around the living room, lounging as they eat and talk about everything and nothing.

Regina actually ends up stretching her arms over her head at one point and Terry spots the scar along her stomach as her shirt rises up because of it. And, of course, she just _has_ to ask about it. Not that it's really a big deal, but it's still a bit of a touchy subject. She does, however, tell them of the incident that actually gave her the scar, even if she, herself, doesn't remember all of what happened. She was five when it happened (was it really over a decade already? Wow… she feels _really_ old now…) so the memory _is_ a bit fuzzy around the edges.

Though, oddly enough, she can still remember very well that it was storming… and very heavily at that, because she can still hear the crack of thunder sometimes in her dreams. Awkward…

And somehow, that conversation derails into everyone telling each other about other injuries that they'd suffered at one point. Libby admits to having broken her arm once when she'd fallen off a ladder in the library (which wasn't a real surprise), while Terry merely holds up her leg, stating "Nuff said." Domi's never really had any real "injuries", he admits, though he _did_ once step on a chisel because they were fixing up his room and they'd left some tools by his bedside overnight at one point. The wound hadn't been deep, thankfully, as he'd jumped back to avoid that as soon as the pain hit him, but it had been deep enough to require a bit of stitching.

It's a bit weird for girls to talk about injuries like that, Regina knows, but she doesn't care. She likes that her friends aren't like "the norm" and that she can talk with them about anything…

…well, mostly.

Her right hand itches as if in response to the thought, but she ignores it, lest she draws attention to it. That's the one thing she's not prepared to deal with just yet.

Regina eventually offers to fetch her friends some drinks and no one says no to that, giving her an excuse to move to the kitchen and, for a moment, be alone with her thoughts. She rubs her wrist for a moment, fingers moving along the leather of her glove. Normally she'd not wear it around the house all day… but her friends are here, so she has to make an exception this time. She probably shouldn't, as her Dad's already pointed out, and while she _does_ trust her friends, she just doesn't know how to say what she wants to say.

Let alone, what _can_ she say?

She comes back with the all three drinks, held precariously between her hands, and she makes sure to watch where she's going lest she drop them. No such thing happens, thankfully, and once she's made a quick trip to get her own, they begin debate on what to do next. Her Dad will likely not be back until nightfall, if at all; it really depends on how the hunt goes, so they have time.

Eventually they come up with a new variant of "strip poker" and dub it "dress poker"; in which the loser has to wear one of the dresses in Regina's closet.

Regina's obviously not a fan, but Terry and Domi love Libby's idea, meaning it's three to one and she's vastly outnumbered. Meaning she has no choice but to join them.

Domi's the first loser, and while he initially whines about losing, his grievances quickly fade when Regina shows him _exactly_ how many dresses she's actually gotten from Iris over the years. Not all of them will fit now, but there are plenty that will, and Domi actually spends a good few minutes looking them all over (twice), before deciding on a pale bluish-green dress with a V-neck and long sleeves, while the skirt just barely touches his knees. And, unsurprisingly, he makes it look _good_ on him, and Regina can _see_ Libby's eyebrow twitching.

Libby loses second, and she takes the "punishment" in stride, even though they all know Libby's extremely excited about the concept of wearing a dress. Having grown up in Lestallum, where the women are expected to carry the entire workload, she's not had many opportunities to wear one. She eventually settles on a strapless dark gray and white dress. She looks good in it… only Domi insists on 'fixing' her hair, since the bun apparently doesn't fit the dress.

Domi loses again after, and he almost whines about having to switch dresses already, but he does so anyway. He picks a wine-red dress that hugs his figure perfectly, and Terry actually has the audacity to let out a wolf-whistle, much to Regina and Libby's amusement and Domi's embarrassment (a little… he's actually just as amused, he says).

And then he loses again and has to change yet again, this time into a light blue party dress.

It's Libby's loss next time, and she pulls out a dark blue skirt and shirt combo (which they decide is also allowed after Domi's third loss).

After that, Terry _finally_ loses a round… and she _has_ to wear a shirt and skirt, because she can't fit into any of the dresses because of her build. It looks good enough, but it's definitely not for her.

…and then Regina loses.

"Ah _crap_ ," she groans out as she drags her hand over her face, while the others are laughing in their own respective ways.

"Looks like it's your turn, finally, Regi," Libby says as she adjusts her glasses.

"I _know_ …" Regina groans in aggravation. She's got half a mind to refuse to do it… but heck, even _Terry's_ agreed to the terms, and she's admitted to not liking dresses and skirts either because they're so annoying to run in. Might as well own up to it…

However, as she's standing in front of the closet, she's inwardly groaning at the selection, while ignoring Terry's call for her to hurry up. She's got _nothing_ in there that even remotely to her tastes. Then again, dresses in general weren't for her…

"Try this one, Regi," Domi suddenly says as he comes over, and he pulls out one of the darker skirts in her closet, along with its matching shirt. "You can just imagine these are… well, short shorts," Domi offers with a slightly lame shrug.

The attempt's appreciated, but it doesn't make it any more acceptable for her to wear the damn thing…

Regina eventually resigns herself to her fate, though, taking the items and moving into the bathroom. She strips out of her casual clothes, setting them aside so she can get back into them later, before she stands and glares at the skirt, as if she could set it aflame without anyone knowing somehow. In the end she sighs and tugs the shirt on first, before she steps into the skirt and tugs it up over her hips.

Good _lord!_ That's WAY too much air up her legs!

She struggles not to growl in frustration, bites her lip and takes a heavy breath, before she moves out of the bathroom. When she does, everyone is looking at her, and she can tell Terry's struggling not to laugh.

"Not. A. Word," she hisses softly, more than a little annoyed.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Terry is able to get out amidst her barely suppressed chuckles.

Domi allows a small smile, and he's obviously trying to say something nice, without bringing on Regina's ire. Not an easy thing to do with her current state.

She really just should've said 'no' to the whole thing…

Libby is smiling cheekily, but then the expression falls and she frowns in concentration. And Regina doesn't like the look…

"On a completely unrelated note, Regina," she says, and Regina knows it's bad because she's using her full name, "is there a reason you're still wearing that glove of yours?"

…oh… _crap!_

In her haste to just get this over with, she'd completely forgotten about doing something about her glove! And _of course_ Libby would notice… she was like Iggy; she noticed _everything!_

"Just didn't feel like taking it off," she says, playing it off as it being a casual slip-up that just, you know, happens.

"Even when you go to sleep?"

 _Oooooof COURSE_ Libby noticed her sleeping with the damn glove on! The Six be damned! Why'd her friend have to so observant?!

"Does it matter?" she asks rather than answer the question, because honestly, she doesn't have an answer for it…

"Perhaps not, but it does raise a few questions about what you could be hiding under it," Libby points out. "Did you get injured, perhaps?"

That would be an easy way out… and yet she chooses not to take it. "Seriously? No."

"Then why else do you choose to keep it on?"

"Ah um…" Domi interrupts them. "Can… can we just… keep playing? I mean, if she's not hurt, isn't that fine?"

"In normal circumstances, I would agree… if she didn't appear to be actively hiding something with it."

She's not sure if Libby is worried, suspicious, or both, but she's going to place her bets on both.

Terry then joins in the 'argument', but Regina isn't sure whose side she's on, and her friends start to go back and forth over and over again arguing about the importance and/or significance of her glove and whatever she's hiding under it. And Regina doesn't know how to say anything in response to any of the comments.

She's holding her hand behind her back now, as if this will make it go away somehow. It's itching like crazy, as if it's demanding to be uncovered and shown off, but she squeezes her hand firmly to suppress the urge, because she's just not sure how it'll be taken.

"…but you can't just force her to do something she's not comfortable with!" She catches the tail-end of Domi's argument.

Libby is frowning now as she counters with: "Something she is not comfortable with… or a matter she does not trust us with?" and the words make Regina's whole body lock up in alarm.

"Hey now, Lib; that's taking it a bit too far, don't you think?" Terry points out, but Regina doesn't hear anything else.

 _Trust…_

Her Dad's words from months before come back to her, where he asks her kindly if she trusts her friends, and then tells her that if she trusts them, that she needs to have faith in that trust that she's built up with her friends. If she trusts them, she must have faith that she won't be judged… based on a few lines on her skin.

The itch was gone, almost as if her thoughts were influencing it, and maybe they were, but she can't be too sure. Still, though…

"…Okay, _fine_ ," she says then in mock defeat, startling her friends into stopping their argument almost immediately. She doesn't give them the chance to question her words as she lifts her hand and starts to finger with the clasp that has always kept the glove secured around her wrist, preventing it from slipping off by accident. It feels like it's been forever since she's had so much trouble with it, though, and it seems to take much longer than it should've.

But finally, the clasp clicks loose and Regina's breath hitches for a moment.

"R-Regi…! Y-you don't have to if you don't—"

"It's okay, Domi," she reassures him, as she pushes her thumb under the material and starts to push it up and along her hand. "It's not like it's something bad…"

And then, finally, the glove comes off and Regina clenches and unclenches for a moment, unused to the lack of leather against her skin after so long. She doesn't even remember the last time she actually removed the glove for anything; she tends to wear it all the time now, even during the shower and baths.

Once her hand's gotten over the fact that it's no longer covered up, she holds it out palm down, allowing her friends to see the thing she's been hiding for so long. The reactions are mixed, and she's not sure if that's a good thing or not. Libby's reaction is one of confusion and curiosity, and Terry's is a cocked eyebrow and a whistle of awe. The only one she can't read is Domi, who is looking at her hand with an almost empty expression… and that worries her…

…but then…

"…oh… em… _GEE!_ " Domi exclaims suddenly, running around Regina and then grabbing her hand to turn her hand his way. "That's so _pretty!_ " he gushes as his thumbs move along the dark lines, tracing the outline with the tip of his long nails. "Does it mean anything or is it just abstract in general?"

"Uh… I'm not sure…" Regina admits as Domi's fingers continue to trace the sharp black lines in the center and the half-shut eye-like emblem in its very center, before moving it along the small curled up creature that's drawn under it, and then to the staff with this Spiracorn-like head on top arching diagonally 'behind' the center section, with small crystalline-looking snowflakes dotting the sides. It's a very intricate mark, and Regina's almost sure it means _something_ … but she doesn't know what it could be; it's been there on her hand for as long as she can remember, and she's never really questioned where it came from in the first place or if, perhaps, it had been something left to her from her real parents. "I don't think there's any real meaning behind it…"

"Awww…" Domi almost whines as he smooths the pads of his fingers along the mark with a small smile playing on his painted lips. "That's a pity… it looks like something that holds some sort of story… like it's the cover of a story book."

"Ah… well, I suppose so…" Regina murmurs, glancing down at the mark. She'd never considered it like that before, but now that Domi's pointed it out, she can see it (a little…).

"…though… it does look a bit empty here, doesn't it?" Domi points out then, tapping at the area opposite of the staff. And he's right, of course, because Domi's got that eye for detail and can tell if a drawing is unfinished or completed; it does seem rather empty… like there's something missing there that should've been there from the start.

"I guess…" Regina murmurs, but her finger's itching to curl up against her palm. She can't tell them… she _can't_ … showing them is one thing… but telling _that_ … no, she can't do that…

"Interesting…" Libby says finally. "So you say you've always had this? Does that mean your father gave it to you at an early age?"

"Ah no, he… oh wait…" Right; they don't know; she never told them. "Dad… isn't actually my father."

"He's not?" All three of them say this at the same time, and they all look equally stunned.

"No, he's not. I'm adopted."

"Oh shoot…" Terry murmurs softly. "Regi… that's—"

"Don't bother, Terry," Regina says as she waves the matter off. "It's no big deal; I ended up fine the way I did. And who cares if Dad and I don't have a blood relation? Even if he's not my actual father, he's still my Dad. And that's not gonna change anytime soon."

Libby hums as she adjusts her glasses, nodding approvingly. "Wise words. Although it does worry me about whom gave you this tattoo… and what kind of parent would see this done to their own child…"

"Frankly? I don't even want to know," Regina admits. "…Anyway… who's up for another game?"

Terry blinks before she lets out a guffaw of laughter and then she grins as she says she's game as long as the dresses/skirts keep coming, and so (after a bit more scolding from Libby), they go back to their table to play.

As they continue to play, though, Regina is relieved that her friends are completely ignoring the mark on her hand. However, even though they haven't responded badly to the mark, she knows she'll continue to wear the glove regardless of their acceptance.

After all, no one had to know that the mark had been gradually expanding with time… or that the eye in the center had once been a mere line…

No one had to know…

Not even her Dad…

She would take this secret with her to her grave…


	14. Firsts

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 786

 **Summary:** A girl's first time is rarely a pleasant experience. And for Regina, this holds very true, and even the times after, it's always been less than enjoyable…

* * *

 _ **Firsts**_

Regina has never felt like being born a girl is a bad thing. She's never felt any sort of distaste over her gender, and never even considered changing under any circumstances if she were given the option.

But there was one thing that had made her temporarily reconsider on more than one occasion…

She's only twelve years old when she experiences her first time, and while she hasn't cried in years from pain that had been inflicted on her, the pain she was going through now put it all to shame and almost has her screaming in agony and wailing in pain as tears roll down her face. Her fingers are clawing at bare skin and she's short of breath and she's trying so hard not to whimper as she feels her legs cramping up from the tension in her muscles.

Even when her Dad comes to help her, the pain just doesn't go away…

And there was _so much blood…!_

* * *

It doesn't even end there; every other time after, the pain doesn't go away and doesn't lessen, and while she learns to bear with it and manages to stop her tears… it just doesn't go away… and the blood just won't _stop!_

She's thankfully learned to prepare herself for it somewhat, but it doesn't lessen it under any circumstances… and there's still the moments where it hits her unaware and has her crying out in the middle of the night.

* * *

" _Nnnaaarrgh!_ "

The roaring scream is out of her throat before she can stop it as the pain rouses her from her sleep and Regina curls up on her side, her fingers clawing at her stomach as she feels her tendons tensing up and cramping up her legs. She's quick to grit her teeth to muffle the oncoming screams, but it's already too late; the others have already woken up.

"Regina?!" comes the almost perfectly chorused cry as her friends come over to crowd around her flimsy hotel bed. She hears their worried cries but can't differentiate who's who, and really, it doesn't matter right now. She's a little more focused on the Six-be-damned _pain!_

She hears Terry saying something from the side… something about knowing what's going on or something? It's a bit hard to tell, but it sounds like she's telling Domi to go get something from the owners, while Libby has to go to the bathroom and get something? Heck if she knows! The pain's making it difficult to fuckin' _think!_

Shortly after though, Libby is back and when Regina cracks open one eye through the pain, she spots her passing Terry a tall glass of water. The fuck?

"Regi, c'mon!" Terry says as she helps the brunette sit up— _fuck that hurt!_ Goddamn pain's shooting up her back now!—and holds out one hand, which holds two light blue pills. "Take these; it'll help, I swear!"

Regina regards her friend as she gasps for breath, considering it, before she snags up the pills and shoves them down her own throat. She swallows them dry, and then accepts the water and guzzles it all down in less than a minute. As she finishes it, she passes it back to Terry and drops back on the bed with a groan and a whine of agony.

Domi's coming running into the room then, gasping for breath as he's holding something in his hands she can't see. "I got it!" he exclaims as he holds it up.

"Good. Get it over here!"

Domi hurries over and then Regina can see what he's carrying; a hot water bottle. What's that for?

Terry takes it over and turns to Regina then, asking her: "Where does it hurt the most?"

The most? Oh that's easy.

"Right now?" Regina hisses out. "My fuckin' _back_ , that's where!"

Terry nods and urges her to lift up a little, and makes sure that her nightshirt is covering her bare back before she puts the bottle down under her and then tells her to lower again.

"FUCK! That's hot!"

"That's the point! Be glad you've got your shirt, now stop whining, will ya?!"

She wants to shout but she figures 'why bother?' and just remains on the bed, the heat of the hot water bottle gradually spreading along her entire back even through the flimsy material of her shirt. As the time passes, eventually the pain in her back lessens and her stomach stops its violent orchestra, allowing the muscles in her legs to relax again. She breathes in relief and just flops down, just letting the bottle's heat move through her.

"You alright now?" Terry asks then, and she snorts.

"Depends on what you define as 'alright'," she points out, keeping one hand to her stomach, just in case.

Libby is humming as she adjusts her glasses. "That seemed… quite fierce. Is your start always this painful for you?"

"Oh yeah… ow, fuck…" Regina hisses softly as she tries to get a little more comfortable. Absently she can't help but wonder what her Dad would say if he caught her cursing this badly. She was hoping that by now, with her being 19, it was okay, but heck, you never know.

"Damn… you got anything with you for it? I got a few spares if you want some…" Terry offers.

"Ah, no, thanks… I should still have some left in my bag."

Or at least she hopes so.

She sits up slowly and goes for her bag to the side of the hotel bed, zipping it open and then rummaging around inside. She was sure she had some left…

"A- _ha!_ " she exclaims as she pulls out the thin, green tube. "Knew I had some left!"

"Cool. Better use it before you need to toss your undies, huh?" Terry jokes, and Regina chortles softly as she gets up.

"Yeah, no kidding… I'll be right back."

Regina silently heads into the bathroom, shutting and locking the door behind her as she moves over to the toilet. She pauses briefly to look down at the tube in slight annoyance. She _hates_ having to use them… but with her choice in underwear, she has little choice otherwise.

With a heavy sigh, she flips the lid down and shimmies out of her shorts and then her boxers before she lifts her leg and plants it firmly on the lid. She first snags a piece of toilet paper to assess how much damage has already been done, but thankfully, there's only a small blotch of red. So, after balling that up to toss later, she adjusts her position somewhat and puts the tube against her core after using the fingers of her other hand to open herself up. She breathes deeply, shutting her eyes, and then she pushes forward with her index finger. There's some initial resistance, but it slips in smoothly enough.

After giving a small sigh, she steps back, tosses her garbage, and then tugs the rest of her clothes back on, before she heads back out.

When she comes back to the room, everyone looks up to her, as wide awake as she is and she shrugs apologetically. "Sorry 'bout the rude wake-up call, girls," she says sincerely.

"Ah no biggie," Terry says before anyone else can say anything, as Regina walks to her bed and plops down on it, resting her back over the hot water bottle. "So what's the damage?"

"None, thankfully… so we don't have to make a pit stop later for extra supplies."

"Okay, cool," says the redhead with a nod as she settles on a chair. "But damn… Must be rough to have it start so painfully, huh?"

"Definitely," Regina mumbles. "I'm just glad it kicked in during the night rather than in the middle of a hunt…"

"Yes, that would have been extremely inconvenient," Libby agrees after pushing her glasses a little further up her nose.

"To say the least, yeah," Terry mumbles.

Regina hums in response, unmoving for a little longer, before she finally decides to talk. "So how do you girls deal?"

Terry snorts and says: "A lil better, but not much… I get pains at the second day… so I usually _do_ end up with some damage…"

"Dang… Libby?"

"Thankfully, I do not suffer any pains… but it does make it annoying when it hits unexpectedly," the bespectacled girl says calmly. "Thankfully, I am able to make a rough calculation on when it will strike."

"Somehow I'm not surprised…"

"Does it last long, Regina?" Libby asks after a moment of silence.

"Four days, usually. You?"

"Like five, usually…"

"Six."

"Huh… guess my stomach's just trying to get it all out ASAP, huh?"

"It would appear so, yes…"

They laugh at the implication that Regina's stomach is just being picky with her and just trying to do what it thinks is best for her, but it's during this that something strikes her as off…

And then she realizes; Domi's gone.

Regina frowns as she sits up and looks around swiftly. "…Where'd Dom go?"

"Whuh? He was just… …well shoot," Terry mumbles.

Libby hums. "Perhaps he felt… uncomfortable, discussing this matter."

Regina winces at the implication and then sighs. Yeah, that makes sense; no matter how long they've been friends now, and no matter how Domi dresses himself, he's still the only odd one out of their bunch; the only man in a group of girls. Of _course_ he'll be getting uncomfortable when the girls start talking about _those_ times… that's not something you're supposed to discuss in front of men. Hell, she doesn't even dare in front of her Dad!

"Darnit… I'll go look for him," she offers, because she knows him well enough to have an idea where he's gone.

She pulls on some pants, slips into her shoes (without socks for now) and pulls on her Dad's old jacket, zipping it up before she heads out of the room, promising to be right back. She takes a moment to walk, because her stomach and back are still aching a little, but she finally makes it to the hotel's roof. After a moment of looking around, she smiles softly to herself as she spots the familiar figure sitting on the edge of the roof, arms wrapped firmly around his knees with his pale hair hanging in wavy curls down his back.

"Domi!" she calls out as she walks over, and he jumps in alarm before whirling around.

His face is clear of the makeup he wears during the day, and many who've only seen him with it would deem him to be unrecognizable without it, but Regina's known him long enough to know what he looks like just fine. Even without the makeup, it's hard to tell at a glance if he's male or female from his face alone, but Regina likes to think otherwise.

"Ah… Regi…" he says, coughing briefly as his voice cracks. His voice isn't very "manly", either, but it's not really… well, feminine, either. It's like right in between, and that's just fine.

She moves over and settles on the edge next to him, letting her legs hang off the edge. "You okay? You just up and vanished on us." She isn't upset, of course, and she makes sure he can tell as much from her expression.

"Ah… sorry," he says as he reaches up and twirls a lock of his hair around his finger. Regina often wonders if _that_ is how he's gotten it to curl so much… "I just… yanno… needed some air."

"Yeah, of course, I can see that…" Regina murmurs, deciding to play along. If there's one thing she's known for a while now, it's that when it hits for her, you _can_ actually smell it if there's no other real scents around. And yeah, it's not a pretty smell, she admits… it's made _her_ sick on more than one occasion. "But you could've grabbed a coat before going out… or at least your shoes, silly!"

"Huh? …oh! Woops!"

Regina laughs as Domi titters behind his hand as he regards his bare feet. Good lord, though, she's seen a man's feet plenty of times before (her Dad, Gladio, Iggy… so yeah…) and they've always been _huge_. But _ooooh_ no, not Domi; his feet were dainty and small compared to any of them. Hell, he could fit into Libby's shoes if he really wants to, and she's the shortest of them all.

"So hey…" she starts, finally. She knows she has to bring it up, no matter how much she doesn't want to.

"Hm?"

"Were you uncomfortable?"

"…! U-uncomfortable? About what?"

"Domi, please; can we not dodge around the subject tonight? You _know_ what this is about."

She hates putting him on the spot; he's just too adorable sometimes, but this needs to be done.

He flinches, before he turns away and looks out into the darkness, illuminated only by Old Lestallum's massive beacons, meant to keep the daemons at bay at all times. He starts braiding his hair, and Regina can tell he's trying very hard to think of what to say.

"…it's just…" he starts after a well, his voice almost a pitiful squeak. "…I can't… I just wish I could… relate to the rest of you…" he admits finally.

Regina frowns in question, before the meaning sinks in. Is he for real, though? He wants to go through _that_ just to be able to relate?

"No, you don't."

"Wha…!? Yes I—"

"Trust me, Domi; you don't," Regina interrupts, leaning forward on her knees. "It hurts, it's annoying… heck, I wouldn't wish this on _anyone!_ If I could change one thing about the human race… yeah; this would be it." She looks at him firmly and states: "So please… don't say that you want to experience this pain… coz I don't want to see you suffer like we do. Kay?"

He's looking at her in what seems like shock and surprise, for a long time, but in the end, he just smiles slowly and she breathes in relief when he promises he won't say it again. That's a load of her shoulders. She helps him up and tells him they should be heading back before Libby and Terry send out a search party.

"Oh, and next time we make you feel less than comfy… feel free to whack us upside the head, alright?"

"What? I can't do that! Terry would certainly clobber me and Libby would twist my ear off!"

"Oh? And what about me, hm?"

"Well… I think you're the only one who won't do anything…"

She chuckles. "You sure?"

"…um…"

"I would…" She pauses and suddenly reaches out, pinching his cheeks. "Pinch those chubby cheeks of yours!"

"Wha-what?! I-I-My cheeks are _not_ chubby!"

And Regina merely laughs as she races him all the way back to the room.


	15. Cut Your Losses (request by akamurasaki)

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 783

 **Summary:** Arguments happen, and rarely do they end well. This is something that Regina's known for a long time, and she knows an apology is needed to fix things… and yet she can't do it.

* * *

 _ **Cut Your Losses (requested by akamurasaki)**_

Regina hates arguments; she really does. They only ever break things and make it difficult to fix things up again. This is something she's seen happen plenty of times before, and not just with friends and family, but with the people in Lestallum as well.

She especially hates arguments if she's somehow involved in it… especially when it's with family.

Worst of all when it involves her and her Dad.

Now that doesn't happen often (thankfully), but it _does_ happen, and today's one of those occasions. She doesn't even remember what it was about, just that it was a very bad one. Bad enough to warrant her stomping up to her room and slamming the door before throwing it on the lock. Maybe it has to do with _that_ time again, because it always makes her more emotional, maybe it's her teenage hormones because she's just turned 16, but whatever the cause was, it got its damn job done.

Regina's been holed up in her room for… she looks at the clock… five hours already. Lunch has passed, but she hasn't come out to eat yet. She doesn't feel like going downstairs and facing the music just yet. Of course, she'll have to eventually, just not now. She settles then, and decides to take a short nap, maybe that'll help her cool off enough to be able to go down without feeling aggravated. She _does_ remember to set an alarm so she doesn't sleep the whole day away.

Then she lays her head down and goes to sleep.

* * *

When Regina's awareness returns, she groans as she realizes she has difficulty breathing. She's on her back, and she can tell the blankets have been kicked off, and yet she feels like she's suffocating. Slowly, she manages to crack open her eyes…

" _Mrooooow!_ "

Regina almost screams—actually, maybe she did—as she bolts upright, the bundle of fluff on her chest easily getting out of dodge before she was even halfway up. "Oh for… _You little…!_ Dammit, you need a diet!"

The black cat merely meows at her innocently, as if he didn't just scare the living hell out of her. She groans and reaches for her phone to check the time, but just as she does, her alarm goes off and she sighs, before flicking it off.

"I swear… you and your timing…"

"Meow."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it, already," she chuckles as she climbs off the bed. She briefly looks over to the window and sighs as she spots it open again, confirming just how the silly cat even came into her room when she knows for sure she'd shut the door. "Okay… let's go down and see what's dinner."

Thankfully her temper's calmed, so she feels a little better going down the steps. When she arrives, though, the kitchen and the living room are both empty. Rather than worry, though, she goes to the kitchen and yep, sure enough, she finds a note.

" _Went hunting. I'll be back later._ "

Her Dad's handwriting, so she's not worried. In fact, it's only better, since it gives her some more time to collect herself properly without flying into an angry rant.

"Well, guess we're on our own for dinner… so how 'bout we go fish?"

" _Mrrrrroooow~_ "

She laughs as she goes to the rack and pulls down her fishing rod and picks up both her bucket and lure box. After grabbing her keys she heads out, making sure that everything is locked and secured, before she starts off, the black cat hot on her heels and his reflective collar's moon-shaped bell jingling softly.

They reach Regina's regular fishing spot soon, and after she's set everything up, she arches her arm briefly before she snaps it forward, watching and listening to the familiar whirring as the lure flies through the air before settling on the water gently. And when it's settled, she lowers down and settles on the rocks in silence, her feline companion joining her in silence.

Like that, she spends a good hour fishing. It's not that they don't want to bite; just that she keeps getting the small fry that won't fill either herself or her and her companion. And if she decides to cook for her Dad as well, she's going to need even more than that.

When she's finally sure she has enough, she picks up her gear and starts to head back, taking note of the falling dusk. Realizing she has little time left, Regina hurries back to the house, flipping on the large beacons once she's inside to keep the daemons at bay, before she heads on to the kitchen.

She doesn't often cook, but Iggy's taught her how to cook her own catches, so she can do that alone no problem. Before she starts, though, she checks her phone, just in case her Dad had called or texted and she missed it. He hasn't, though, and she's not sure how she feels about that. She eventually shakes it off and tucks the phone in her pocket, just so she'll know immediately when someone calls or texts.

It takes her about ten minutes to fix her companion's food with a small portion of the fish. Then she works on her own and her Dad's food. She doesn't know when he'll be back exactly, but she assumes it won't be much longer…

Food takes about half an hour, and she splits it across two plates. She then snaps a picture with her phone real quick and sends it to her Dad, saying she's already made dinner for them, along with the note that she'll wrap it up in foil just in case before she does exactly that. And once she's done with that, she picks up her own plate with the utensils and moves to the dinner table.

As much as she tries to play it off, though, she _hates_ eating alone, and halfway through, she pulls out her phone, just in case… you know? But no, she hasn't missed anything… and she's getting worried now.

Yes, they had argued before her Dad left… but he wouldn't leave her in the dark about where he was for this long…

She forces herself to finish her food, because it won't do to starve herself to death, but once she's finished, she unlocks her phone and moves to her contacts… and pauses.

She _could_ call him… but what if he's in the middle of a hunt, still? She could end up distracting him just enough for whatever his target is to get to him…

Or what if he's still angry…?

Regina groans heavily and swipes a little up to a different number, taps it, and then brings the phone to her ear. It rings a few times, but then it clicks and she hears a familiar voice, but she groans as she listens to the words.

" _Yyyyello, y'all jus' reached Hammerhead. 'Fraid I can't come ta the phone righ' now, but leave yer number an' I'll call ya back. Bu-bye._ "

 ** _Beeeep_**

Regina sighs softly. "Hey, Cindy, it's Regina. Hey, have you… talked to Dad today? He said he had a hunt, but he isn't back yet, so I figured he mighta grabbed one at Hammerhead. Could you call me back when you get this? Thanks."

And then she hangs up and she sits back with a heavy sigh. She tells herself not to worry, tells herself that it's going to be fine and that her Dad is just delayed, that he'll probably be walking through the door any minute now… She keeps telling herself that and hoping that it's true, because she doesn't dare to think about the possibilities should it not be the case.

Regina's too worried to go to bed, so she goes to the couch and lays herself down there, pulling the throw blanket over her for heat. She starts going through some things on her phone, trying to stay occupied and get her mind off of her Dad… but no matter what she does, her thoughts always go back to him. By the time she looks at the clock again, she's shocked to note that it's almost midnight.

He's never gone this long, and this causes her worry to grow exponentially.

She bolts upright and she knows she shouldn't do what she's about to do, but she can't stop herself anymore. He's told her horror stories about the daemons that come out at night, especially around midnight, making her terrified of the world during the night when she was younger. And while she's older and wiser now, she isn't any less terrified of the terrors that lurk in the dark.

Regina scrolls to her Dad's number, and, without thinking twice about it, pushes down on the call button next to his name. She holds the phone to her ear then, and she listens…

One ring…

Two rings…

Three rings…

Click.

" _Hey, sorry 'bout that; can't come to the phone right now. Busy busy. I'll call you back later._ "

Regina hangs up before the beep. And then she dials again.

One ring…

Two rings…

Three rings…

Click.

" _Hey, sorry 'bout that; can't come to the phone right no—_ "

Regina hangs up. Tries again…

One ring…

Two rings…

Three rings…

Click.

" _Hey, sorry 'bo—_ "

She hangs up again, bites her lip, and then her thumbnail, as she does when she's nervous, curling up on the couch. He's never ignored her for so long, no matter how much they'd fought… and he at least _called_ if he got stuck somewhere…

" _…mrooooow!_ "

She jumps and looks down, at her companion, and she sighs and unfolds herself, letting him hop onto her lap, and she pets him. It helps (a little) in distracting her… but it doesn't get rid of her doom-thinking…

What if something _did_ happen…?

What if he's _hurt_ …?

 _What if what if…?_

Her mind is reeling, she feels sick to her stomach, her eyes are watering… and when she lays down, trying desperately to stop her mind from thinking… her dreams are filled with red…

* * *

It's with a jolt of alarm that Regina wakes again… and it's because she's heard the door opening. All at once, she feels relief, worry, anger and happiness and she isn't sure which of them is most prominent now, but she immediately climbs off the couch and nearly scrambles for the door. She's got words ready at the tip of her tongue, she knows she does…

None of them ever make it out…

She makes some sort of strained, terrified sound as Gladio half-walks and half-stumbles inside, her Dad's arm pulled over his shoulder and his other arm holding him up by the waist as he fairly _drags_ the shorter man inside. She barely hears Gladio's words, or those of Ignis as he follows them in; all she hears is the blood rushing through her ears as her eyes focused on the bloody gauze that covered the majority of her Dad's chest and stomach, poorly hidden with just his jacket slung around him.

She's shaking, her breathing is ragged and even when Iggy comes over to try and calm her, saying something like it's going to be okay and that her Dad's going to be fine, it doesn't stop her heart from hammering against her ribcage until she feels like they're bruised. She can't hear anything, can't look at anything else as Gladio carries her Dad up the stairs, and she follows on shaking legs as Ignis guides her along.

Gladio puts her Dad to bed, and it's then, when he's resting in his own bed, injured and in obvious pain as he is, that she begins to understand words again. Her Dad apparently went out without telling anyone, without asking anyone for assistance, and took on a hunt that was too much for him. No one knew where he was, and the only reason anyone even knew it was out was because _Cindy_ called Gladio and Ignis, after she'd gotten Regina's message, asking them if they'd seen him or talked to him about a hunt.

And even when Gladio and Ignis had gone to look for him, retracing his steps, they'd been unable to find him… until they'd heard his phone going off.

She doesn't hear anything else they're saying; she's too panicked, too worried, and just too… out of it.

She doesn't even notice that she's crying, even as Iggy gently holds his arm around her shoulders…

* * *

Regina's never felt this upset about anything, has never been unable to utter a word, even if only to hum an agreement. She just can't bring herself to say anything as she lies on the bed next to her Dad. She doesn't care what the others have to say about it, if anything, as she remains right where she is. In normal circumstances, she probably would've hugged him, but his current condition makes her wary of causing more harm than good, and so she remains laying where she is, worried and biting her lip, struggling to not cry any more than she already has.

Iggy tries to get her to eat… but she's not hungry.

Gladdy tries to get her to jog… but she's got no energy for that.

She just remains there… just… half asleep and trying not to think…

Thinking is bad… especially now…

And despite how she's slept the whole night already, her worrying exhausts her to the point where it knocks her out again.

She doesn't know if she's dreaming or if what she sees is real, but it's shifting so many times that she's starting to dread even opening her eyes. One moment she opens her eyes and her Dad is looking at her, leaning over her in her own bed like nothing's wrong, the next she's blinking and staring at his lifeless body lying next to her. One moment she's waking up on the couch to the door opening and him walking through, telling her he's home _finally_ , the next she's waking up to Iggy being on the other side with Gladio in the distance, telling her there was nothing they could've done.

Dreams and reality are starting to blend together and she can no longer tell what's real and what isn't. She doesn't know what to believe anymore, and her heart is starting to hurt so bad, that she fears it may break if she's forced to go through any more of this…

She just wants her Dad awake again… she still hasn't apologized…

As Regina prays for this, she feels a familiar presence in the back of her mind, a gentle glow covering her vision, a light that feels… safe, protective, and comforting…

Her dreams slowly stop as the soft ruby light envelops her gently, shushing her and promising that all will be fine soon. She has no more dreams after that…

* * *

When Regina wakes up, it's to a warm, familiar touch to her forehead, but she doesn't open her eyes just yet. She's still afraid of what she may see when she does… still afraid that she'll wake up to so much red…

"Princess… time to wake up, sweetie…" a voice chuckles out… and it's a familiar one, as are the words… but they make her even less eager to get up.

She whines loudly, curling up even further, trying to move away from the touch, as she mumbles sleepily: "Five more minutes…"

A laugh, and then there's a shake at her shoulder. "Nope. You've slept long enough; c'mon, honey."

 _Six-be-damned_ , she wants to say, but she holds it in and merely groans in frustration. She then reaches with one hand to wipe away the dust in her eyes as she stretches herself out with a small yawn— _okay_ , a big yawn, shut up…

When she blinks her eyes open, she almost shoots up when familiar blue eyes are staring back at her, a hint of amusement in his eyes as he leans his head on his elbow… but then her earlier dreams catch up to her and she pauses.

"Morning, sunshine," he says to her when she remains silent.

"…"

Regina doesn't answer. Not immediately, anyway. In the end, she groans loudly and flops down, pulling the pillow over her head. "Dammit, not again…" she hisses angrily, but her voice hitches, betraying how her heart is hurting.

"Wha… again? Princess, what's—"

"Go 'way…" she mumbles from under the pillow, curling up and pressing the pillow firmly against her ears. "I dun wanna dream anymore… go away…"

She's _so_ tired of all of this dreaming… why can't her brain just… let her _sleep?!_

"Oh, princess…"

Suddenly there're arms around her shoulders and she's pulled up against a solid chest, and it makes her gasp in slight surprise… before she starts to struggle.

"Lemme go!"

"Sshh… it's okay, sweetie… it's okay… sshh…"

"No! Let go of me!" she shouts, shoving her hands forward—

" _Gah!_ "

—and freezes up.

Her fingers are twitching, and she can _feel_ the heated skin beneath the pads of her fingers… _feel_ the rough material of the gauze under her thumbs… _feel_ the pulse pounding under her right hand… _feel_ the light sweat drops along the skin…

Slowly, she dares to open her eyes and she breathes heavily as she raises her head _so_ slowly. "D… Dad…?"

He's smiling at her, but she can see there's a hint of pain lining the expression. "Heh… easy on the wounds, will ya? Still kinda hurts there…"

Regina tries to talk, tries to say something _anything_ … but all that gets out is a broken sound she can't even name…

Her Dad's still smiling, though, and he tugs her close again, hugging her firmly to him and shushing her softly, though why is… …oh. She's crying… that's why. Right…

"Da…Dad, I… I-I'm so…"

"Ssssh… sshh sweetie… I know, I know… it's okay… it's okay… everything's fine… everything's just fine…"

She tries to speak again, but her throat's clogged up and she can't make a sound. Her eyes are watering and with every blink the tears just keep coming. It takes almost a minute, but she finally shatters and she lets out a pathetic wail as she buries her face in his chest, sobbing and wailing as her Dad continues to gently shush her, rubbing her back continuously.

" _I'm so sorry… I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry…_ " she chokes out over and over and over again.

"Sssh… I know, sweetheart… I know… sshh… it's okay… shush now, princess… everything's okay now… it's okay…"

The 16-year-old girl is hiccupping and sobbing as she tries to calm herself down again… but she can't help herself… she's just so happy that she can't stop crying… she just _can't_ …

"I… I'm sorry… I… I love you, Dad…"

"I know, sweetheart… I love you, too…"


	16. Wednesday (requested by NightTheDragon)

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 752

 **Summary:** Prompto really has no problems telling Regina about her "Father", but there are times when he believes his little girl to be a little TOO inquisitive…

* * *

 ** _Wednesday (requested by Night_the_Dragon)_**

Kids are curious creatures, Prompto's learned quite early on when he took Regina in. One of the things he had to be extra careful of was her not swallowing anything she could choke on as she tried to figure out (with her mouth) what things were. Now he understood why all the cleaning supplies have those "Keep out of reach from children" signs on the back.

And the second they start talking, they want to know _everything_. Which isn't necessarily bad, but little kids can't read the mood properly, yet, so when Regina ask something that's… a bit embarrassing to most, she doesn't realize this and keeps demanding an answer.

Although… even when they _can_ read the mood, Prompto's learned that that doesn't stop kids from asking questions and requesting answers.

And it definitely doesn't stop Regina.

* * *

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait… you wanna know _what_ now?" Prompto asks, almost sure he's heard her wrong. Though, with how Regina's fidgeting and fingering the pillow she'd picked up at some point (which she's now holding to her chest), it's not easy to make himself believe that, even if her voice remains steady as she repeats her question.

"About your first date. Yanno… cuz Father was… well, yeah. Did you even go on dates, actually?"

That was a question he had never really expected to be asked, _ever_. Sure, he knew that Regina wanted to know as much as she could about him and her "Father", as she had gotten to calling Noct since she had turned 16 about 5 months ago, but this? Hoo-boy…

She's going to keep asking until he answers her, so he sighs heavily as he plops down on the armchair across from her. "First date, huh? Good one… hm…"

He runs a hand through his hair as he thinks back… back to the days when things had been so much easier for… well, for everyone really. Or, well, everyone in the Crown City. He thinks back to his school days after becoming friends with the crown prince of Lucis, quickly rising up to "best friend" ranking in maybe a day or two… maybe even faster, really.

And the longer he thinks about it… the more he realizes…

"Well… I don't think we actually _did_ have an actual… well, 'date'…" he admits finally.

Regina looks a little disappointed at the news, but she nods in understanding. "Ah… yeah, I figured… I mean… it only makes sense… right…"

There's definitely something else to her words, given how much she's now fiddling with the edge of the pillow, but he can't be sure why that is.

The conversation is quickly abandoned for other, lighter subjects, but it's clear that it's still eating at her, despite the lack of… well, 'real' answer. While Prompto was pretty sure he'd given as honest an answer as he could possibly give her, the question stays on his mind for much longer than it probably should, and he finds himself thinking back more and more to his time in the Crown City… to his time with Noct…

He sighs as he comes with nothing, even as he flicks absently through his photo albums while Regina is out fishing, because it's Wednesday, and they always eat fish on Wednesday because…

Prompto pauses and blinks, thinking back to the reason why he said they would always eat fish on Wednesdays… and then he smiles fondly.

When Regina comes back, carrying a hefty bucket full of fish, a content smile on her face at the good catch she's gotten, Prompto praises her on her good job, and they start to work on deboning the fish so that they don't bite down and/or choke on them later during dinner. As they work, though, Prompto looks over to his daughter, and notices from the look on her face that she's likely still thinking about her earlier question.

So he speaks up.

"You know…" he starts, as he tosses the bones of the fish he's been working on in the trash, "I think I may've been mistaken."

She looks at him oddly, wise enough to set down her knife so she doesn't accidentally hurt herself. "About what?"

"About our first date."

He can see her eyes widening from the corner of his eyes, and he smiles softly as the interest and curiosity that had never really left flared back to life. He tells her that they should finish working on the fish first, and then he'll share, and she nods excitedly.

They've never dealt with the fish as fast as they do then, and once they're done, Prompto leads her back to the living room, where they sit down and he finally begins to talk…

* * *

It was already a rough day; Noct's dad hadn't been doing well, and Noct had been (once again) reminded of his father's mortality by Ignis, which wasn't helping things. On top of that, their teachers had, naturally, not cared about any of their feelings (or seemed not to, anyway), and Noct was just _so DONE_ with everything that particular day.

The question, however, was what were they supposed to do about it? Noct was certainly _not_ in the mood for the arcades; he wanted to be somewhere where they wouldn't be bothered by anyone, and while either Prompto's house or the prince's apartment was an option, it just didn't seem like it'd do at that time.

Prompto was looking through one of magazines he'd gotten recently, trying to look it through for something to do… and then he found an add that promises to give exactly what they need right then. When Noctis walked over from putting away his books for tomorrow, Prompto showed him the add and asked if he wanted to go there.

Noct wasn't sure initially, but eventually said: "Sure, let's go."

To which Prompto had jokingly replied: "Then it's a date!"

Somehow they were able to convince Ignis to take them, coz it was quite a bit away from their usual hangouts, and then they were off. They talked the whole way… well, Prompto did, Noctis just mostly listened and sometimes hummed or said a few words, which wasn't anything new.

When they arrived, Ignis asked when he should pick them up, but neither was sure so they said like an hour or two, maybe three, max, before Noct just said he'd call if they needed to be picked up.

The came inside and it was really weird and really relaxing all at once. The place looked like some sort of giant lake in the middle of the massive room, but the "sky" above was obviously a projection, as the colors and celestial bodies were going _way_ too fast. Neither of them had any real idea what they were supposed to be doing, so Prompto went up to one of the employees and asked for a quick lesson.

And quick was right; it barely took ten minutes, and then they were left alone to enjoy their time alone.

Naturally, Prompto was the first to get bored, but Noctis seemed to be so calm and peaceful, that he didn't dare tell him so. Because hell, they were there for the prince, after all, so who was he to deny Noct anything.

"…aren't you supposed to hold it still, Noct?" he asked after a few more minutes as Noctis flicked at the reel of his fishing rod a bit.

"So he says," Noct said with a snort. "but why would a fish go for an unmoving target?"

"Because it's easier?"

"And not as fresh."

"Okay, buddy, if you say so…"

About a minute after he started flicking the reel randomly, though, Noct's lure suddenly went under and his rod curled as there was a sharp pull. Startled, Noct almost froze until Prompto shouted at him to reel and start working on getting the fish to shore. Sadly, that one got away, but Noctis was not deterred and he cast out another lure.

The second one went a lit better, but still no catch.

Prompto said: "Third time's the charm," and sure enough he managed to land one this time. Prompto took his picture with the fish, to celebrate his first ever catch, after which they went right back to it, because the Six-be-damned, Prompto was going to catch something, too!

But even with Noct's help and "expert" advice, it took him at least six more tries before he _finally_ caught himself a fish. It was nowhere near the size of the one Noctis had caught earlier, but hell, Prompto was just glad he'd been able to catch _something!_

Noct took a picture of him with his catch, of course, and after that, they debated on whether to stay a little longer or to just go home and call it a day. As tempting as it was to just keep going, they both knew that they couldn't stay there for the entire night. They still had school in the morning…

In the end, they fish for two hours more before Ignis comes to pick them up regardless. As they were heading off, collecting their stuff before they go outside to join Ignis (since he'd gone on ahead), Prompto'd exclaimed loudly: "Well! I'd consider that a successful date! Wouldn't you say?"

Noctis had hummed in thought, as if he was seriously debating the question, before he said: "No, not yet."

"Whuh? Why no—"

Prompto hadn't even been able to finish the question before he was grabbed by his tie and then suddenly dragged forward with a yowl of alarm. Not that _that_ sound lasted long, as Noct's mouth was suddenly _right there_ and hot and firm and… then the realization hit him that _Noctis Lucis Caelum was kissing him!_ The hell?!

Noctis didn't even offer him the time to properly react to the sudden kiss, as the raven pulled away just as suddenly, a cheeky smirk on his lips. " _Now_ it's a successful date," was all he said, before he started walking off.

And Prompto? Prompto spent a few moments standing around, blinking and just staring at nothing, before his brain finally caught up and he whirled around to run after Noct. " _Hey!_ "

"Wha—"

This time _Noct_ couldn't finish his sentence as Prompto yanked him in by the collar of his jacket and slammed their mouths together a second time. No one was complaining (that Prompto could recall), and when they broke apart, Prompto growled out: "You're an ass, you know that?"

And Noct— _the ass_ —merely smirked and asked: "Don't hear you complaining."

"…Ass."

"Prom."

"Huh?"

"Shut up."

And then Noct curled his hand in Prom's hair and pulled him in again.

* * *

Regina's laughing and he doesn't blame her; he's laughing at least half as hard recalling how his "first date" ended. And now he also remembers why he'd not remembered their first date sooner… it simply hadn't started out as one. It just ended up _being_ one.

By the time they finish laughing, they are both slouched along the couch, huddled up against each other for warmth. It's getting chilly sooner and sooner, which means it will be winter soon, but they really don't care about that. It just isn't important…

"…Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"…do you miss him?"

"…yeah."

They fall silent for a while more…

"…I wish I could've met him…"

Prompto smiles. "I'm sure he would've liked you."

"…really?"

"Yeah, I'm sure of it."

Regina smiles softly and settles against her dad's side. Prompto smiles as well, as he wraps his arm around her shoulders.

"…love you, Dad…"

"Love you, too, sweetheart."


	17. Lead

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 782

 **Summary:** Regina's learned a lot over the years… but there's always something new to learn, and Libby's always prepared to be the teacher she needs to be.

* * *

 ** _Lead_**

"…Hey, Libby?"

"Hmhmm?"

"…Who's leading Eos now, anyway?"

It's a sudden question, and Libri obviously hasn't been expecting it, since she looks up and blinks from behind her glasses, surprised and confused for all of two seconds, before she pushes her glasses back on her nose.

"Well that's sudden… from where the sudden interest?"

Regina holds up the book she'd been leafing through; the Cosmology book that describes how the first Oracles came into being, as well as the first King of Lucis, and how he had been given control over the Crystal. There was a lot in there, sure, but it also succeeded in sparking the question in her mind that asked; who's leading _now?_

Libby hums softly as she accepts the silent answer, before she gives the answer.

"Currently, the Secretary watches over Eos."

"The Secretary…? From Accordo?"

"Correct."

"How'd _they_ get into power?"

"Temporary power, really. They are merely holding the seat temporarily until a more stable system constructs itself."

"…but it's been 15 years…"

"It isn't so easy to restructure a nation, Regina. It may take another 15 years, perhaps it will take 20 years, or maybe 30. We may not even be there to witness it coming to fruition."

"…what about the Crystal?"

"Pardon?"

"Do they also control the Crystal now?"

"…No."

"No?"

"While the rest of Eos is being steadily rebuilt, the Crown City remains in a state of ruin. And no, not because there is no wish to rebuild, but because it's become too dangerous to do so."

"…why's that?"

Libby is now looking at her as if she's an idiot, but Regina honestly has no idea. Her Dad's talked about the Crown City with great pride, and she's always dreamed of one day going to the city to see the sights he always spoke so fondly of. She would've loved to see the Crystal, though that would've been impossible, she figured soon, but a girl can dream, right?

"Because of the daemons."

"…so why not send out some Hunters?"

"They did. None ever returned. And the few that did, shortly after turned into daemons, as well."

Regina freezes. She's heard about that from her Dad; the Empire had attempted to utilize the power of daemons, using them for the MT's, and ended up turning themselves and ALL their inhabitants into bloodthirsty, super powerful daemons. It always sounded like a scary horror story her Dad would tell her before bedtime, but he's always assured her that what he told her then was the truth… as horrifying as it sounded.

"So… no one's… dared to fix the city?"

"Correct. It's been deemed too dangerous, and thus the city's been cordoned off, for everyone's safety."

That hurts… she doesn't even know why, but that _hurts_ …

She actually really wanted to go to the Crown city. She wanted to see the city in all its glory. All her Dad's pictures from his time living there had been in the city when it fell, and he'd never gotten around to getting them back, so she didn't even have anything to help her imagine what it'd be like to live in the once proud city…

"Don't even say it."

"Wha…?"

"I know that look on your face; you want to go there, correct?"

"Well… yeah, but… that's just because Dad… well… it used to be his home, so I'm like… at least a little curious about it. You can't blame me for that!"

"Perhaps not… but it would be unwise to go there now. If you wish to go there, wait until it's been restored."

"…Assuming it gets fixed during our time…"

"Regina."

"Fine, fine…"

She sighs as she goes back to her book, flipping the page to continue reading. After a while of silence, though…

"…what if there was someone from the Line of Lucis left?"

"Unlikely."

"Why?"

"It would mean either King Regis had a second child somewhere… or that King Noctis had sired a child. I needn't remind you that either of these options are ridiculous."

Of course she knows that.

The late Queen Aulea had died a few years after Noctis had been born, and Noctis, to everyone's knowledge, had never had a child. While he had been on the way to be married to Lunafreya Nox Fleuret of Tenebrae at the pinnacle of war between Insomnia and Niflheim, there'd never been time for them to marry… let alone consummate their marriage. And that wasn't even taking into account the time it would take for a child to be born.

On top of that, upon their late King's return, he'd not wasted his time with women (her Dad could confirm that, since he'd been the one wasting several hours with him instead), and had instead gone straight to the Crown City to bring back the dawn.

There was simply no way for the Line of Lucis to be alive today…

She sighs softly as the realization hits home and she tries to not think on it any longer. It'll just upset her all the more…

…even if she doesn't understand entirely why…


	18. Black and Blue (request by AncientPoop)

_**Long Live the Queen**_

 **Fandom:** Final Fantasy XV

 **Pairing(s):** Past _Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum_ and mention of _Noctis Lucis Caelum/Lunafreya Nox Fleuret_ at points. Also a number of _OC/OC_ pairings.

 **Summary:** A series of ficlets depicting the life of Prompto's adoptive daughter, Regina, from the moment of her adoption to the moment where she discovers her true place in the world.

* * *

 **Year:** M.E. 756

 **Summary:** As they spend some time at Wiz's Chocobo Post, Prompto learns that the Black Chocobo that they had saved all those years ago has had her own chicks. And as Regina asks to help raise the Chocochicks, Prompto's reminded of the trouble he and Noct got into back in the day…

* * *

 ** _Black and Blue_** (requested by AncientPoop)

It isn't often that Prompto has time to take a day off from hunting, but when he does get the chance, he likes to spend it with his daughter as much as he possibly could. And then, it's just a matter of what they're going to do.

This time, though, his little 9 year old daughter had wanted to go see the Chocobos. And who was Prompto to deny his little girl a request? Plus; he wouldn't mind seeing the Chocobos, himself.

When they arrive at Wiz's Chocobo Post, Prompto's barely shut off the engine or Regina is already undoing her seatbelt and clambering out of her seat. And Prompto merely laughs as he follows after her. Of course, the first thing Regina does when they arrive, is run up to greet Talcott, who laughed warmly as she came up to him with a cheerful hug.

As Prompto joins them a little later, Talcott says suddenly: "Oh hey, Promp! Amare's eggs hatched the other day!"

At those words, Prompto's eyes widen almost comically, before he smiles warmly, while Regina looks around curiously, unsure what's going on, until Talcott takes her hand and leads her and Prompto off to one of the special pens. And when they arrive, Prompto laughs as he hears his little girl give a squeal of glee as she hurries for the pen and looks into the pen toward the small flock of Black Chocochicks.

The chicks are chirping and hopping about as mother Amare walks about and keeps a close eye on her chicks, and it brings a warm smile to Prompto's face as he watches the Chocobo quietly.

"So cute!" Regina chirps happily, as she reaches out through the fence, trying to reach one of the chicks. But, of course, the chicks aren't interested, and this makes Regina pout.

Prompto laughs as he leans on the fence, and he watches Amare, and Amare notices and she looks back, and then she chirps, a cheery "Kweh~!" and trots over. He smiles as he stands up a bit and then pats Amare's head as she pushes her beak up against his chest for attention with another chirp.

"Hello, Amare," he says softly as the large bird chirps merrily.

Regina is pouting, he notices, so he laughs softly and picks her up, bringing her up to Amare's level. The Black Chocobo chirps curiously as she regards Regina, who holds out her hand to the bird, before Amare allows Regina to pet her, a cheerful chirp coming from her beak. And Regina's smiling again, and this makes Prompto smile as well, as her cheeriness is more than a little contagious.

* * *

"Daddy, I wanna help Taly with the chickies!" Regina chirps suddenly as they're setting up in their room.

Prompto blinks in slight surprise at the words as he looks at his little girl, before he snorts and laughs. "Well that's sudden… but really, sweetie, it's not that easy, you know?"

"I can learn!"

Prompto laughs at the girl's eagerness. "Yeah, well… you might have some difficulty with them, princess… if they're anything like their Mommy."

"Huh? Why?"

"Well… because your Papa and I had to watch her once and… well, it didn't go too well."

"What happened, Daddy?"

Prompto smiles as he moves over and plops down on the bed, next to Regina. "Well…"

* * *

It'd been a long week of seemingly endless hunts along with hunting down a bunch of dumb rainbow frogs for Sania, but the gil they'd made from the hunts was worth it. Mostly, anyway. Ignis had finally decided that they'd earned enough money to allow them to take a break. And, because they were in the neighborhood, Prompto'd insisted on staying at Wiz's Chocobo Post.

Which was what had gotten them in the current predicament.

"How the hell'd she get up there?!" Noct was asking as he and Prompto were looking up the rocky cliffs, where the little Black Chocochick they'd called Amare was sitting, perfectly comfortable, by the look of things.

While Ignis and Gladio had offered to help Wiz in redesigning the race track, Prompto had offered himself up to look after the little Chocobo chick they'd rescued a few weeks back, and, by extension, Noctis as well. While Noct hadn't been that interested in it, in the end he figured it was better than actually working on the racetrack.

Now, however, both of them were starting to regret their decision.

"I dunno, but you gotta get her down from there!" Prompto said insistently.

"Wait, why me?"

"Coz you can warp and I can't, duh!"

Noct sighed in slight annoyance, but he was quick to concede to Prompto's point and he took a few steps back, looking up to the ledge where Amare was sitting. After a moment more of watching her, he materialized his Engine Blade and then threw it toward the ledge with a well-aimed swing of the wrist.

And Prompto watched as, in the blink of an eye, Noctis disappeared from where he had been standing next to the blonde, to materialize high above, hand gripping his blade as it protruded from the cliff's side. Once he was up there, it took him a little bit to clamber up onto the ledge properly, though he managed, somehow.

"Careful, Noct!" Prompto called out toward the prince as he balanced precariously on the cliff.

"Would you be quiet?!" Noct snarled in return as he slowly moved over toward Amare. "Alright, Amare… easy now… time to go home, girl," he said as he approached her.

However, the moment he reached her and tried to pick her up, the chick chirped and suddenly hopped down. "Shit! Prompto!"

"I-I got her!" Prompto called out as he rushed forward and reached up to grab Amare, moving back slightly when he wasn't in the proper position – only to trip back over a rock with a yowl. And then Amare landed on his stomach with enough force that his stomach'd likely bruise and bounced off and scampered off again.

"Dammit, Prom!"

"S-sorry!"

By the time Noct was back on ground level, Prompto was already clambering to his feet and hurrying after the chick, and Noctis was only a few steps behind. It didn't help that the surrounding ground was still wet from the recent rainfall, and this caused them to almost slip on multiple occasions, hitting the dirt/mud and staining their clothes and their cheeks and getting it in their hair and they got more than a few bruises from falling over and over again and they were cursing and getting more and more aggravated the longer this continued on.

They'd thankfully managed to keep Amare from wandering into old Deadeye's nest, because even though Deadeye was taken care of, that didn't mean there weren't any other Behemoths in there that were out to try and munch on unsuspecting little Chocochicks. But that didn't mean it was any easier to catch the chick.

It took them almost an hour of running around after the chick before Noct finally managed to warp just enough in front of Amare to snag her up, a little less than gently, but he was just way too annoyed to be entirely gentle. Amare was chirping and squawking in indignation, trying to flap her little wings, but Noct held vast and was growling and snarling under his breath in his annoyance.

"I am never listening to any of your ideas ever again!"

"Oh come on, Noct! That wasn't even my fault!"

"Maybe, but none of this would've happened if you hadn't offered to watch her!"

They argued all the way back to the outpost, where they toned it down immediately as Ignis and Gladio approached them, both confused and a little worried about their appearance, but Noct was quick to wave it off and dismiss the whole issue. Once Wiz had ensured that Amare was back in her pen and wasn't going to run off again, though, the prince had immediately made a beeline for the caravan, clearly agitated, still.

Prompto, of course, told the others he'd calm him down and had hurried after Noct, hurrying inside before Noct could think to lock the door behind him. Noct was already in the bedroom, and so Prompto sighed as he walked over slowly, peeking his head around the door. Noct was face down on the bed, head stuffed in the pillow. He'd thrown off his muddied clothes in the hamper had changed in some easy shorts and shirt, which Prompto should probably do, too, but this was a little more important…

"Noct…?"

"I'm not talking to you," was the immediate (though muffled) response.

Prompto tried not to sigh as he slowly stepped into the room, ditching his jacket on the nearby chair. He debated on removing his shirt, but in the end decided against it as he moved over. He did rub off the mud from his hands/gloves on his pants and the back of his shirt as he approached. As he sat down on the bed next to Noct, who didn't respond to it, Prompto briefly popped his knuckles, before he reached out and placed his palms against Noct's back.

The prince had tensed at the touch, and he seemed ready to say something angrily in response, but as Prompto'd moved his fingers and pushed and rubbed, the words shifted halfway into a soft groan. Prompto smiled as he felt Noctis relaxing under his fingers, and he hoped that, with the tension, the anger was flying away to… wherever it went whenever it wasn't used.

"…better?" he asked after a moment.

"Mmhmm…"

Prompto smiled a little wider at the hum, and continued his gentle but firm massage of the prince's muscles, glad to note that he had calmed down again.

After a moment of silence, though…

"…I'm still not listening to your ideas again."

"Oh come on, Noct!" He was about to say something else, but then he noticed Noct's lazy smirk. And this had him pausing to try and stifle his chuckles. "Ain't there a way I can convince you otherwise?"

"And how do you intend to do that, huh?"

Rising to the challenge, Prompto flipped Noct on his back and swiftly connected their mouths together. And Noct merely chuckled as he slipped one hand into the blonde's hair, the other reaching for one of Prompto's.

It was a very short make-out session, really, because Ignis and Gladio could come in at any moment… but it was enough, for now. Their breathing was slightly heavy when they finally pulled away, but that was fine, as Prompto moved over and rested himself next to Noctis.

They didn't often get to cuddle nowadays, and whenever they got the chance they were always on edge for anyone who could be watching. Because it wouldn't do for anyone to know that the Crown Prince of Lucis was getting it on with a commoner – and a male commoner, at that – especially with his upcoming marriage with Lunafreya.

If that was still going to happen, anyway…

"…think we can adopt Amare if the wedding stays cancelled?"

"You bring that up again and I'm never talking to you again."

"Awww…"

* * *

"That was mean!" Regina points out, pouting, and Prompto laughs softly.

"I know, sweetie, but Papa was in a bad mood. So yeah, he wasn't in the mood to talk about Amare like that so soon."

"…Did you adopt Amare?"

Prompto again bursts out laughing. "I wish I could've… but we never got the chance. But it's fine; she ended up fine without us, so I can't complain."

"I guess so…"

Smiling softly, Prompto then stands up. "So… shall we go see the chicks again?"

"Yeah!"

And he smiles as he takes the girl's hand before they head off. And he secretly hopes that things will not go the same way they had with him and Noct…

That's the last thing he needs right now.


End file.
